The 2006 Rally of Turkey was a motor racing event for rally cars that was held over three days between 13 and 15 October 2006. It marked the 7th running of the Rally of Turkey, and was the thirteenth round of the 2006 World Rally Championship season.[2] The event was also the eighth round of the 2006 Junior WRC. The 2006 event was based in Kemer in Turkey and was contested over nineteen special stages, covering a total competitive distance of 337.79 km (209.89 miles).
Sebastien Loeb, along with Kronos Citroën World Rally Team were the defending rally winners, but Loeb would not enter the rally after breaking his arm in a mountain biking accident.[3]Colin McRae would take Loeb's place, in what would end up being his last rally before his death the next year.[4] He would retire on the final stage with mechanical issues.
The following crews were set to enter the rally. The event was open to crews competing in the World Rally Championship and its support category, the Junior WRC, as well as privateer entries that were not registered to score points in the manufacturer's championship. Fifteen were entered under World Rally Car regulations, as were seventeen in the Junior WRC category.[5]
Before the event began, the service park and stages were hit with a large storm that damaged some of the teams' service areas. The rain continued throughout the shakedown, where Solberg was fastest.[7]
Friday saw more rain; stages 1, 2, and 4 were cancelled, and stage 5 was shortened, due to poor conditions. Many drivers commented on the slippery, muddy conditions. It was Gronholm with the fastest times in the first two legs, where conditions were the most treacherous. Rovanpera would lose a wheel on stage 3, while McRae was cautious due to his lack of experience in the car under such challenging conditions.[8] Petter Solberg would win all 3 stages in the final leg of the day, but it was not enough to catch Gronholm, who lead at the end of the day.[9]
Saturday saw dry conditions in the morning, but the roads remained difficult due to the rough nature of the stages. Gronholm, Hirvonen, and Solberg would trade stage wins throughout the day, until Solberg hit a rock and became stuck in a ditch on stage 14, forcing his retirement.[10] The second leg of the day saw rain return, as well as spats of hail and snow. With Solberg out of contention, Gronholm's nearest competitor, his teammate Hirvonen, was over two minutes behind. Gronholm would lead at the end of the second day, despite calling the nature of the rally a "nightmare."[11]
On the final day, Gronholm and Hirvonen would finish the rally with a Ford 1-2. Petter's brother Henning Solberg would round out the podium after surviving the terrible conditions of the previous few days. Petter would win two of the three Sunday stages, but it would not be enough to earn any points. Meanwhile, Atkinson, who had remained in a good position throughout the rally, would fall two places to 6th on the last day. McRae would approach the end of the day in 6th, only to retire due to electrical malfunctions on the last stage.[12]
