Andreas and Ola with hat-trick after winning Mountain Rally

Andreas Mikkelsen’s 2012 rally season has begun in fine style after he scored victory on the opening round of the Norwegian Rally Championship, the snowy Mountain Rally in Norway. He also ended last season with two wins in a row.

Co-driven by Ola Fløene, the reigning Intercontinental Rally Challenge Champion won the Gol-based event (located in the Hallingdal region of Norway, 118 miles/190kms north-west of the capital city of Oslo) in his IRC title-winning ŠKODA Fabia S2000, finishing 7.2 seconds ahead of Mads Østberg/Jonas Andersson (Ford Fiesta S2000).

Østberg took the lead on the short opening stage, but Andreas – who was doing the event as a pre-season test – fought back and, despite a spin, claimed victory after all six stages had been completed.

Andreas: “It’s very nice to start the new season off with a rally win, and I am very pleased. It’s a long time since I’ve driven on snow and ice and having been away for two years it was great to rally in Norway again. We had to drive fast to beat Mads and even though we were here to test, competing against such a good driver meant we really had to focus on our driving – so it was a very good test situation for us.”

Andreas and Ola will next contest Rally Finnskog (4 February) as a final test in preparation for Rally Sweden (9–12 February), at which they’ll drive a Volkswagen Motorsport-entered ŠKODA Fabia S2000 alongside Sébastien Ogier.

Final Result - top 10:











1 7 Andreas Mikkelsen Ola Fløene Skoda Fabia S2000 A 2 44:11.5 0:00.0
2 1 Mads Østberg Jonas Andersson (S) Ford Fiesta RRC A 1 44:18.7 0:07.2
3 3 Sveinung Bieltvedt Roger Eilertsen Subaru Impreza STi N 3 46:50.3 2:38.8
4 2 Anders Grøndal Trond Svendsen Subaru Impreza STi N 3 47:03.9 2:52.4
5 8 Bernt Kollevold Ove Johnny Andersen Mitsubishi EVO IX N 3 47:42.7 3:31.2
6 10 Peder Økseter Stig Rune Skjærmoen Subaru Impreza STi N 3 47:48.8 3:37.3
7 13 Trond Sveinsvoll Otto Øvestad Subaru Impreza STi N 3 48:35.9 4:24.4
8 12 Geir Helge Frøslid Ragnar Engen Subaru Impreza STi N 3 49:54.2 5:42.7
9 18 Petter Rolfsen Anders Kjær Ford Fiesta R2 A 5 50:32.3 6:20.8
10 17 Petter Kristiansen Ole Kristian Brennum Skoda Fabia R2 A 5 50:49.1 6:37.6

Source: Andreas Mikkelsen Official Website Photo: Benjamin A. Ward / www.benjaminward.no