Rally – Valiant winner in the Clio R3T Trophy

At the end of an indecisive and hotly contested race, particularly on the first day, he was ahead of Rémi Jouines and Jérôme Chavanne. The competitors in the Clio R3T France Trophy will meet next month during the Rally from Antibes.

Winner of the French zone of the Clio R3T European Trophy last year, Benoît Vaillant started again on the same basis this weekend, during the first stage of the 3 Clio R2016T France Trophy, organized with the support of Michelin, ETS and Sparco. But everything was not easy for Picard, to seize control and build his victory.
 
It was Jérôme Chavanne who was first fastest in SS1, closely followed by Rémi Jouines, who took the lead at the end of SS3, and Benoît Vaillant. The three drivers proved to be the three strong men of the first stage. At the end of SS5 – the last timed sector of the day due to the cancellation of SS6 – Rémi Jouines was 5”9 ahead of Benoît Vaillant and 8”0 over Jérôme Chavanne. Starting on a Clio R3T, Charles Martin was convincing in fourth place (+21”5), ahead of Pascal Bérard (+56”1). Further back, Philippe Corneau (+1'12''0) kept the advantage over Guillaume Bergeon (+1'14''3) and Kevin Van Deijne (+1'23''5).
 
The second stage started in the same way, with a top 3 grouped in five seconds after SS7. But Benoît Vaillant took advantage of the next sector, the longest of the event (25,3 km), to strike a blow. Between Marchampt and St Cyr le Château, he distanced Jérôme Chavane by 13”6, Rémi Jouines by 20”1 and took the lead. Second in time (+4''2), Charles Martin got closer to the podium, before taking the scratch in SS9, then taking third place at the end of SS11, to the detriment of Jérôme Chavanne.
 
Benoît Vaillant then set the best times, four in a row, to take the lead in the standings ahead of Rémi Jouines. In the final special, Jérôme Chavanne set the best time and took third place from Charles Martin, who lost time following recurring brake problems. Benoit Vaillant thus won ahead of Rémi Jouines, Jérôme Chavanne and Charles Martin. Philippe Corneau won the battle for fifth place ahead of Pascal Bérard and Charlotte Dalmasso, first female and author of a good end to the race – 4th time in SS14. Damien Tozlanian, Stéphane Boissy and Guillaume Bergeon completed the ranking. In addition to his victory, Benoît Vaillant won the bonus for best Junior and the points for “best performer Jean Ragnotti”.
 
Benoît Vaillant, winner (11th scratch): “It was a very competitive rally, we are happy to have come out on top! I knew that we had renowned opponents facing us, so I expected a very high level. First of all, we were happy to see that we were in the right rhythm. And, in the second special stage on Saturday, we were able to create a nice gap, before confirming. We had to be vigilant, this rally can prove difficult in humid weather conditions as was the case. We are happy to start with a victory and the place of “best performer Jean Ragnotti”. But we know that in each event, we will have to fight to be in front! »
 
Tarik Aït Saïd, Customer Competition Sports Manager, Renault Sports Racing: “We are very satisfied with this first event, with a great winner, Benoît Vaillant, and great competitiveness between our clients. Our strategy aimed at rewarding the competitors more in each round, in particular the winner who pockets €7, or the best Junior and the best Female who are awarded a bonus of €000, is bearing fruit and we are certain that the winner at the end of the season will have displayed all his determination and talent. We would also like to thank our partners in the Clio R1T France Trophy, Michelin, ETS and Sparco. Let us also note the excellent reliability of our cars, and the performance of Manu Guigou who places his Clio R000T in first place in the R3 ranking. »
 
Lyon-Charbonnières Rhône Rally – Clio R3T France Trophy 1. Benoît Vaillant – Antoine Brule 2h04'05''6 2. Rémi Jouines – Adrien Bonicel +41''2 3. Jérôme Chavanne – Julien Schillaci +1'03''6 4 .Charles Martin – Matthew Duval +3'02''9 5. Philippe Corneau – Grégoire Samuel +4'26''6 6. Pascal Bérard – Caroline Bérard +5'17''7 7. Charlotte Dalmasso – Gwenaëlle Le Poëc +6'12''7 8. Damien Tozlanian – Pierre-Etienne Blot +9'27''8 9. Stéphane Boissy – Jérôme Bard +15'59''2 10. Guillaume Bergeon – Vincent Merlet +17'53''7
 
Best performer Jean Ragnotti 1. Vaillant 5 points – 2. Jouines 3 points – 3. Chavanne 1 point
 
General classification 1. Benoît Vaillant 30 points 2. Rémi Jouines 21 3. Jérôme Chavanne 16 4. Charles Martin 12 5. Philippe Corneau 10 6. Pascal Bérard 8 7. Charlotte Dalmasso 6 8. Damien Tozlanian 4 9. Stéphane Boissy 2 10. Guillaume Bergeon 1