Cédric Farlay and Raphaël Marry in the big leagues

« Like the pros », this is the expression that Cédric Farlay and Raphaël Marry regularly released when they talked about their participation in the Rhône-Charbonnières, the endowment of their victory in the Michelin Rally Tour 2021. After the traditional reconnaissance, Farlay and Marry headed to a test base to discover their mount, with engineers and technicians dispatched all weekend to accompany them.

Cedric Farlay, Renault Clio RS Line © Bastien Roux / DPPI

« I discovered the Clio Rally4 this afternoon during testing. There is a big difference with the Clio Ragnotti Group A 2-liter naturally aspirated engine that I usually drive. The chassis is exceptional, with a turbo that pushes very hard. During the first run, I remained very careful, then I was able to answer many questions, confided Cédric Farlay. We are amateurs, we are not used to all this comfort. It is an honor to be able to participate in a round of the French Championship in these excellent conditions with Michelin and the AMD team. » Accustomed to driving the A110 Rally, Raphaël Marry took advantage of the tests to deepen his mastery of the R-GT: “ I was able to work with the ALP Racing Suspension engineer. This allowed me to progress and develop my driving. All the elements are there to take maximum pleasure. »

Rich in lessons

Taking advantage of the advice of their technical staff, the winners of the Michelin Rally Tour displayed a good progression curve, while avoiding the many pitfalls of a rally trying. “ We had prepared to compete in a rally of more than 200 kilometers and I will not hide from you that we were happy to see the finish on Saturday evening, rejoiced Farlay, fifth in the Rally4 Class. There were many new parameters to understand and assimilate. The Clio Rally4 is quick to learn, everything is easier with limits that I didn't look for. Working with engineers and studying the various data collected allows you to better understand your driving and optimize braking and restarts. This is information we don't usually have. »

Raphael Marry, Alpine A110 © Bastien Roux / DPPI

Eighth in a particularly competitive R-GT Class, Raphaël Marry remained very attentive: “ Competing in a round of the French Championship with Team FJ, Signatech and the Michelin technicians is a great experience. I have been advised all this week by motorsport professionals who know their job. We worked a lot on the running gear and the ground connections. I will be able to optimize all these achievements at the wheel of my Alpine during the next rallies. However, I was behind the wheel of a car that was not mine and, in this case, you have respect for the equipment and the teams working around you. » Enough to give ideas to future candidates for victory in the Michelin Rallye Tour 2022.

Julien Vial, Michelin Europe customer competition director

“The Michelin Trophy is a good formula for the French Championship and we have been thinking about setting up an operation for the Coupe de France events for several years. We took the plunge in 2021. The Michelin Rallye Tour is an opportunity for us to support the amateur drivers present in the Coupe de France, this is really close to our hearts. Michelin's desire is to address all crews.

Julien Vial, Michelin Europe customer competition director © Bastien Roux / DPPI

With Ceerta (European Technical Research Test Center Auto-moto), our distributor (Also read > Agostino Turuani: “Without knowing it, I was born Michelin”), we worked in close collaborationboration, to meet the expectations of drivers and provide them with various advice with the presence of our technicians on certain rallies. The first year was marked by the constraints of the health crisis. In view of developments in 2021, we have opted for flexibility by opening the calendar to all Coupe de France events in order to adapt. We took the opportunity to listen to the expectations of the drivers, the results are very positive with good media coverage which highlights the different winners. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank the major players that are Ceerta, Signatech, Alpine Racing and Stellantis (involved with the 2021 winner in the four-wheel drive allocation. Editor’s note). For 2022, we are back on a defined calendar which allows us to create a real challenge between the pilots and final prizes that are always just as motivating to highlight our winners. »

Philippe Sinault, Signatech director

“This association came together very naturally when Michelin contacted me to talk about this project. It's a relevant and nice operation which offers the winner the possibility of racing in a round of the French Championship with theAlpine A110 Rally. In fact, the question did not arise!

Philippe Sinault, Signatech director © Bastien Roux / DPPI

We exchanged a lot with Raphaël Marry for the preparation of theAlpine. The objective is for the drivers to experience a round of the French Championship at their own pace. We provide them with an environment that allows them to progress and have a great experience. »

Benoît Nogier, Racing sales director Alpine Racing

“Michelin presented its project to us around the Coupe de France. It is a competition which represents the heart of our sport and it was important to strengthen our presence among the drivers and teams who compete in the Coupe de France events.

Benoît Nogier, Racing sales director Alpine Racing © Bastien Roux / DPPI

Our desire is to offer the best to the winners and to give them confidence before competing in a round of the French Championship. We supervise them so that they have maximum fun during this discovery weekend, both in terms of the car and the format of the event. We paid particular attention to immersing them in a professional context so that they are considered official drivers, for the duration of a round of the French Rally Championship. »