The Rallye du Touquet marked the start of the French Rally Championship, with unprecedented conditions greeting the drivers on the Pas-de-Calais route. Heavy snowfall earlier in the week had left many roads in northern France lined with high drifts, giving the drivers no room for error. Their task was made even harder by the thaw and accompanying streams of water, with dry but dirty sections and crumbling tarmac only adding to the challenge.

Unfazed, Damien Defert and Florent Diottin took a commanding lead in the first stage ahead of Axel Garcia and Fabien Pomares, Johan Notargiacomo and Marine Delon, and Florian Bernardi and Kevin Bronner, all of whom would prove their closest rivals throughout the weekend.

After setting another fastest time in stage three, Damien Defert went into the three night stages full of confidence. It was a different story, however, for Simon and Julie Lebiez and William Pitot and Alexis Estival, who became the first pairs to fall victim to the snow walls lining the route.

It proved to be the perfect evening for Damien Defert, who set three fastest times to build a lead of 28.9 seconds over Axel Garcia and 37.4 over Florian Bernardi. Newcomers Alexis Sirmain and Benjamin Gaffard, meanwhile, made a promising start by holding a top-six place throughout day one, before going off the road in stage nine.

Axel Garcia made a flying start to day two, clawing his way back to within 15.6 seconds of Damien Defert, who reacted in turn by clocking the fastest time in the three following stages. Despite a further scratch from Garcia in the Front de Mer special, Damien Defert held on to win the first round of the Twingo R1 Trophy France, with Garcia and Florian Bernardi finishing second and third respectively.

Johan Notargiacomo could only manage fifth behind Gabriel Lieffroy and co-driver Laurine Ehrhardt, while Simon Lebiez recovered from a difficult first day to finish sixth.

Damien Defert: "With these conditions, it was almost impossible to avoid making mistakes, and I think everyone made one or two detours off the road. So I’m very happy to have reached the finish and won the rally. We led from the start and finished with the best performance, which is a nice way to thank our partners for all their support."

Axel Garcia: "It’s a job more than well done. We’d aimed for a top-five finish at best, and we’ve ended up on the podium! We have to keep our feet on the ground as the season has only just begun, but we’re confident ahead of the next round in Limousin."

Florian Bernardi: "I’m very pleased, particularly as I did not think I would be able to take part in this event. I damaged the car a few days before the rally, but the Chazel team managed to provide a car for me. I want to thank them for that. With this third place, it’s mission accomplished. It was difficult to get anywhere near Damien [Defert], and Axel [Garcia] had a brilliant drive in his first appearance here. As for my tyre choice, I went for safety for the whole weekend."

Results: Rallye du Touquet

1. DEFERT Damien - DIOTTIN Florent 2:05:17.3
2. GARCIA Axel - POMARES Fabien +41.5
3. BERNARDI Florian - BRONNER Kevin +1:05.6
4. LIEFFROY Gabriel - EHRHARDT Laurine +1:58.7
5. NOTARGIACOMO Johan - DELON Marine +3:04.9
6. LEBIEZ Simon - LEBIEZ Julie +5:05.4
7. ASTIER Raphael - COULET Julien +5:15.8
8. DHAISNE Antoine - FLAJOLET Marine +8:05.5
9. ABELLANEDA Anthony - MANZO Benoit +9:05.2
10. JOUINES Jean - VILLANI Jean René +9:38.6
11. FOLB Terry - CARLUX Sebastien +12:35.6
12. MARAR Taymoor - GOBE Arno +21:36.3
13. PITOT William - ESTIVAL Alexis +33:01.8

Overall Standings: Twingo R1 Trophy

1. DEFERT Damien 25 points
2. GARCIA Axel 18 points
3. BERNARDI Florian 15 points
4. LIEFFROY Gabriel 12 points
5. NOTARGIACOMO Johan 10 points
6. LEBIEZ Simon 8 points
7. ASTIER Raphael 6 points
8. DHAISNE Antoine 4 points
9. ABELLANEDA Anthony 2 points
10. JOUINES Jean 1 points