2005 World Rally Championship Season

Overview

The 2005 season of the World Rally Championship was the 33rd event recognized by the FIA and the World Rally Championship. The world competition took place from January 21 to November 13.

Calendar

The championship consisted of 16 tests held in as many nations, with the following schedule:

* Monte-Carlo Rally (January 21-23)
* Sweden Rally (February 11-13)
* Mexico Rally (March 4-6)
* Argentina Rally (April 1-3)
* Cyprus Rally (April 29-May 1)
* Greece Rally (May 27-29)
* Turkey Rally (June 17-19)
* Italy Rally (July 8-10)
* New Zealand Rally (September 2-4)
* Finland Rally (August 26-28)
* Germany Rally (September 16-18)
* Japan Rally (October 7-9)
* France Rally (October 21-23)
* Spain Rally (November 4-6)
* Australia Rally (November 11-13)

Results

The championship was won by Sébastien Loeb, who became the world champion for the second time. He achieved a constant trend throughout the season and set two important records:

* Unique driver in history to win 6 consecutive rallies: New Zealand, Italy, Cyprus, Turkey, Greece, Argentina
* Won all 12 trials scheduled for the French Rally

Loeb's victory was closely contested by Petter Solberg (Norway) and Marcus Grönholm (Finland), who finished second and third respectively.

Team Standings

The team title was won by Citroën Total World Rally Team.

Notable Events

* Michael Park, co-pilot of Markko Märtin, tragically lost his life during the special test number 15 of the overseas rally.
* Carlos Sainz left the world championship but ran two tests: Greece and Turkey.
* François Duval joined Citroën, while Manfred Stohl and Xavi Pons drove for Kronos team with private Xsara WRC cars.
* Markko Märtin left Ford to drive for Peugeot, replacing Roman Kresta and Toni Gardemeister.
* Skoda had Armin Schwarz as the first pilot, with Jan Kopecký and others driving throughout the year.