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| 2008 Rally of Jordan : WRC Round 5 of 15 : 25th - 27th April In this issue: Final Unofficial Leaderboard Final News Final Team by Team News Championship Points Next Event 1. Unofficial Final Leaderboard 1. M Hirvonen/J Lehtinen FIN Ford Focus RS 4hr 02min 47.9sec 2. D Sordo/M Marti ESP Citroen C4 4hr 04min 03.6sec 3. C Atkinson/S Prévot AUS Subaru Impreza 4hr 07min 47.4sec 4. H Solberg/C Menkerud NOR Ford Focus RS 4hr 10min 23.7sec 5. M Wilson/S Martin GBR Ford Focus RS 4hr 13min 29.6sec 6. F Villagra/J Perez Companc ARG Ford Focus RS 4hr 14min 10.1sec 7. J-M Latvala/M Anttila FIN Ford Focus RS 4hr 15min 03.5sec 8. G Galli/G Bernacchini ITA Ford Focus RS 4hr 15min 12.3sec 9. K Al Qassimi/M Orr UAE Ford Focus RS 4hr 21min 53.6sec 10 S Loeb/D Elena FRA Citroen C4 4hr 26min 26.0sec 2. Final News Mikko Hirvonen and Jarmo Lehtinen claimed their first victory of the season on an enthralling Jordan Rally today. The BP Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team pair returned to the lead of the drivers' standings in the FIA World Rally Championship after winning by 1min 15.7sec in a Focus RS World Rally Car. Team-mates Jari-Matti Latvala and Miikka Anttila were seventh in another Focus RS, as reigning world champion Ford extended its lead in the manufacturers' championship to seven points. Starting first on the road cost Dani Sordo (Citroen) valuable time today. He had to settle for second after a spin on the final stage cost more than 40sec. Chris Atkinson (Subaru) scored his fourth podium in five events in third with Stobart's Henning Solberg (Ford) in fourth. Fifth-placed Matthew Wilson (Ford) clipped a bridge parapet on the final stage this morning and punctured the rear left tyre. The Stobart driver had to stop and replace it, losing two minutes and fourth place. He held off the challenge from Munchi's Federico Villagra (Ford), who equalled a career-best sixth. Urmo Aava (Citroen) retired from fifth after breaking his car's front right suspension in the second stage this morning, while Per-Gunnar Andersson (Suzuki) retired on the next test after sliding into a ditch. 4. Team by Team News BP Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team http://ford.rallye-info.com/teams.asp?sid=2 Tactics played a huge part in BP Ford Abu Dhabi's success. After Latvala and Hirvonen climbed to first and second yesterday afternoon, they slowed during the final metres of yesterday's last special stage to allow main rival Dani Sordo to hold the overnight lead. In doing so, the Focus RS drivers forced the Spaniard into first in today's start order, handing him the disadvantage of sweeping slippery loose gravel from the roads to allow the Finnish pairing a cleaner and faster line behind. Their strategy worked perfectly and both Latvala and Hirvonen leapfrogged Sordo on the first stage this morning. When Latvala suffered suspension problems, 27-year-old Hirvonen broke clear and went into the final stage along the border between Jordan and Israel's West Bank with a 23.7sec advantage over Sordo, which he extended during that final test. #3 : Mikko Hirvonen/Jarmo Lehtinen: "My strategy paid off but I was nervous in the final stage," said Hirvonen. "No split times were available for Sordo and I didn't know how hard he was pushing. I really needed these 10 points and this is a great result for my championship challenge. I need to keep my feet on the ground and continue trying to find more speed and more wins. I've learned how important it is to consistently score points on every rally but 10 is perfect. It was a tough rally but it's good to lead the series again. "When I woke up it was raining but as we were in Jordan I hoped it wouldn't last so that the gravel wasn't dampened down. It stopped quickly, although I expected the driving line to be cleaner. It was really slippery, just like the ball-bearing surface in Australia, and hard to keep on the road," he added. #4 : Jari-Matti Latvala/Miikka Anttila: Latvala's victory hopes ended when he dropped almost a minute in today's second stage with broken rear left suspension. The crew worked feverishly to bind the suspension together sufficiently for the next marathon 41km stage and they did a superb job to simply complete the test. They dropped 10 minutes to fall to eighth and returned to the service park where the mechanics did an equally impressive job to replace the gearbox, rear differential and rear suspension and keep 23-year-old Latvala in the points. He climbed to seventh during the final loop. "In the morning's first stage I hit a rock, but felt nothing," he said. "Halfway through the next test the support link in the rear left suspension snapped. After the stage we tried to strap the suspension together but it wouldn't hold and I had to drive many kilometres with the tyre bent in. I was lucky to get back. I had two perfect days on Friday and Saturday but today was a long one. I need to be more consistent and concentrate without making mistakes. I'm disappointed not to score more points." #19 : Khalid Al Qassimi/Michael Orr: Abu Dhabi's Khalid Al Qassimi and Michael Orr finished ninth in another Focus RS. Al Qassimi was seventh and on course to score his first points until punctures on the final stage cost two places. However, it was still his best WRC finish. "I’m happy but also a little disappointed because I suffered two flat tyres on the last stage when I was fighting for a drivers’ point. I had to stop and fix both tyres, which cost me lots of time. I’ve never been in a points scoring position before and unfortunately luck wasn’t on my side. Citroen Total World Rally Team http://citroen.rallye-info.com/teams.asp?sid=1 The finish ceremony of the first Jordan Rally to count for the World Rally Championship (Round 5) was held near Amman, close to the Dead Sea. Dani Sordo/Marc Martí steered their C4 WRC to second place overall which earns Citroën eight valuable points. Following their misadventure on Saturday, Sébastien Loeb/Daniel Loeb rejoined under the SupeRally ruling and used the day as a full-scale test which brought Citroën a further Manufacturers' point. Prior to this morning's restart, a mere 11 seconds covered the provisional top-three which included Dani Sordo, and any one of this trio could have hoped for victory. The fight promised to be extremely close, especially since the final leg was the longest of the rally, with 134.24km of competitive action divided into three stages to be contested twice each. The highlight of the day was the 41.45km Jordan River test. #1 : Sebastien Loeb/Daniel Elena: Retired. #2 : Daniel Sordo/Marc Marti: The early part of the day also brought a surprise in the form of wind and even a little refreshing rain before the sun and searing heat returned. Running first on the road, Dani Sordo/Marc Martí had decided they would give it everything they could to defend their lead despite the 'road-sweeping' that awaited them. "I was fully aware this morning that the cards weren't stacked in our favour," acknowledged the young Spaniard, "but I tried to put that to the back of my mind and push as hard as possible. That paid because we were only 7.7 seconds off the lead after the first loop, and there was still everything to play for second time round." Dani and Marc left the lunchtime service park intent on giving it their very best shot this afternoon. "I did all I could to recover the lead but it wasn't enough," reported Dani. "Even so, I am pleased with our performance this weekend. We led on two occasions and I was delighted with my feeling at the wheel of the Citroën C4 WRC from start to finish. The rally was quite stressful but it was also beneficial for me. I'm sure the experience will come in useful on the forthcoming events." Subaru World Rally Team http://subaru.rallye-info.com/teams.asp?sid=5 Chris Atkinson and Stéphane Prévot secured a podium finish on the final day of the Jordan Rally after another day of change amongst the front-runners. The only entry for the Subaru World Rally Team today, the duo snatched a step of the podium as those in front stumbled to make it three podiums in a row. Only Atkinson restarted the final day this morning, as Petter was sidelined just before the close of day two. Holding fourth position from yesterday, an intense battle for position between the top three meant that anything was likely to happen, and Chris was there to pick up the pieces. Surely enough, it was Ford’s Latvala who hit problems during stage 18, losing almost 50 seconds during the stage and carrying his handicap into the longest test of the rally, the River Jordan stage. Atkinson continued with his steady strategy, which was sufficient to take him into third position midway through the stage and his fourth podium from five rounds this season. It is the first time since the beginning of 2005 that any one driver has recorded three consecutive podiums for the Subaru World Rally Team, when Solberg and Mills secured their trio in Mexico, New Zealand and Sardinia. #5 : Petter Solberg/Phil Mills: Retired. #6 : Chris Atkinson/Stephane Prevot: “We scored good points again and it’s good for us and good for the team as it keeps us close to the guys at the front of the championship” said Chris Atkinson. “It was a difficult rally for us as almost from the start we were in the middle of nowhere with big gaps in front and behind of us. We managed to go along at our own pace, keeping it on the road. “We had some hard times when things weren’t going well but we managed to get through. It was a bit of misfortune for others, but lucky for us. Sometimes that’s just how it goes. We’ve still got a lot of work to do and we want to be more competitive on pace and pushing for wins, but four podiums from five rallies is a very consistent start for us so with that I’m happy.” Stobart VK M-Sport Ford World Rally Team http://ford.rallye-info.com/teams.asp?sid=2 The fifth round of the FIA World Rally Championship has been a successful outing for the Stobart VK M-Sport Ford rally team this weekend with all three drivers finishing with point scoring results in the Drivers’ Championship. Henning Solberg/Cato Menkerud’s strong finish today saw them end up top Stobart crew in fourth overall. Matthew Wilson/Scott Martin scored their best ever WRC finish together one spot behind Solberg in fifth. Despite retirement on Friday, Gigi Galli/Giovanni Bernacchini remained focused to finish in the final points position in eighth. The fine effort by all three crews has seen the Stobart squad close the gap on third place in the WRC Manufacturers’ Championship. Solberg set out cautiously during the opening half of the event only to close proceedings in a dominant fashion and again finish as the number one man in the Stobart camp. Beginning in seventh this morning the Norwegian put in a string of top-five stage times to be rewarded with his fourth place finish and five valuable drivers’ points. Wilson set out to tackle the final day in sixth position after a consistent run over Friday and Saturday’s legs. A continued solid drive on Sunday saw him advance to fifth by the end of the event, holding off an eager Federico Villagra behind him. #7 : Gigi Galli/Giovanni Bernacchini: “We are definitely pleased with this result but we were disappointed with the problem on Friday. On Saturday I really had to concentrate again and we found a good feeling and a good rhythm with the car and managed to set three fastest times so for sure I must be happy with this progress. Today was quite tough and the long stage made it a difficult way to finish the rally but now I have much more confidence going into my home rally in Sardinia.” #8 : Henning Solberg/Cato Menkerud: “I came to this rally aiming for a fifth place and am delighted to have got fourth; I am really happy with this finish. I knew it was going to be a tough rally and I had to use my head. It would have been easy to push hard from the start and make a mistake but I needed to get to the finish without doing anything wrong. This plan has worked because now I have more points and everything feels good with the car and especially with the next rally quite close, it will help a lot.” #16 : Matthew Wilson/Scott Mart“We were slightly disappointed this morning when the puncture cost us a lot of time but in the end we remained focused and now we have finished fifth which I am really happy with on this new and difficult event. My fitness has played a key part and has helped a lot with my concentration and performance on the stages. This was a hard rally but this finish is now our best result so far this year.”in: Suzuki World Rally Team http://suzuki.rallye-info.com/teams.asp?sid=12 Prior to the event, the third and final day of the Jordan Rally had been billed as the toughest. With the arduous Jordan River stage - at 41.45km, the longest of the event - run twice, it was not going to be a battle to the finish in the continued scorching temperatures. The day started well for P-G Andersson and his co-driver Jonas Andersson. They turned in an exceptional time on the Wadi Shueib test which followed, posting fourth fastest time in the SX4 WRC. Unfortunately, that was the last stage Andersson and the Suzuki would complete on this fifth round of the FIA World Rally Championship. Andersson slid off the road in the ensuing Jordan River stage and retired from the event. Andersson returned to the service park where he met His Majesty King Abdullah II of Jordan. Andersson's Suzuki SX4 WRC ran without any technical faults through the final morning. The team had made no significant overnight changes to the set-up after the Swede's solid run through Saturday's eight stages. The sister SX4 WRC of Andersson's team-mate Toni Gardemeister did not re-start this morning. #11 : Toni Gardemeister/Tomi Tuominen: "Of course I am disappointed not to have finished this event. You go to every rally wanting to get to the end; chasing the best possible result. Here I had a real feeling that we could get the SX4 WRC high up the order. I knew there would be a high rate of attrition on what's going to be one of the hottest rallies of the year, but I was really sad that we were one of the early victims. The good thing is that P-G has shown some pace yesterday, which is an indication of what the SX4 WRC is capable of." #12 : Per-Gunnar Andersson/Jonas Andersson: "This is a really disappointing end to the event for me and for the team. I don't really understand what happened on stage 19 and how I ended up off the road. It had been going well for me. It was very loose, with a lot of gravel on the surface of the road, but we hadn't had a problem. We came into a slow left-hand bend, which led into a hairpin right. I had a half-spin after the left which dropped the front of the car down into the inside of the hairpin. The car went nose in. The rear wheels were still on the road. I put the car in reverse gear straight away, hoping it would reverse out, but the gradient was too steep. Jonas and I jumped out of the car to try and get some more people to help us. Only two people were around. We tried to lift the car out, but it was impossible. On the stage before we'd been fourth quickest, and I was really enjoying it. Obviously I didn't want to retire from the event, but it was an honour to meet His Majesty King Abdullah II. He was very interested to take a look at the SX4 WRC." 5. Championship Points Drivers 1. M Hirvonen 35pts 2. S Loeb 30pts 3. C Atkinson 28pts 4. J-M Latvala 18pts 5. D Sordo 17pts 6. G Galli 12pts Manufacturers 1. BP Ford Abu Dhabi 57pts 2. Citroen Total 50pts 3. Subaru 39pts 4. Stobart VK M-Sport 29pts 5. Munchi's Ford 14pts 6. Suzuki 6pts 6. Next Event In just two weeks competitors will trade the deserts of Jordan for the roads of Sardinia for the sixth round of the World Rally Championship. The soft and almost sandy gravel stages of the island are incredibly loose and can cause the cars to wander under hard acceleration or braking as the surface beneath them shifts. In the lush Italian hills, temperatures can soar but routes can quickly become dampened by the ever-present chance of rain. The stages are very flowing, meaning it is vital that crews get into a good rhythm from the outset in order to attack fully. |