From www.wrc.com
Ford driver Mikko Hirvonen found himself the reluctant leader of the Acropolis Rally tonight after a last stage mistake from his team-mate and a shrewd tactical move from Citroen.
Hirvonen began Friday’s final stage in third place, and looked to be heading for second overnight if - as widely expected - his BP Ford team-mate Jari-Matti Latvala remained in the lead and Citroen’s Dani Sordo dropped back to third.
Unfortunately for Hirvonen and Ford, the plan was unravelling at almost exactly the same time as Mikko crossed the finish line. Latvala’s Focus RS WRC went off at a hairpin 11.6km from the start and got stuck for three and a half minutes.
Hirvonen and Sordo played their parts as planned, which left Mikko in the unenviable position of being road sweeper on Saturday, with only a three second head start over the Citroens behind.
Eighteen seconds behind Sordo in the standings, Loeb too was surprised by the last stage switches. After a spirited recovery on the afternoon’s stages, Petter Solberg holds overnight fourth, 20.7sec behind Loeb.
Petter’s elder brother Henning rounded off the top five places in his Stobart team Ford Focus, but after another difficult opening day he was hoping for a smother ride on Saturday.
photo:Ford
Ford driver Mikko Hirvonen found himself the reluctant leader of the Acropolis Rally tonight after a last stage mistake from his team-mate and a shrewd tactical move from Citroen.
Hirvonen began Friday’s final stage in third place, and looked to be heading for second overnight if - as widely expected - his BP Ford team-mate Jari-Matti Latvala remained in the lead and Citroen’s Dani Sordo dropped back to third.
Unfortunately for Hirvonen and Ford, the plan was unravelling at almost exactly the same time as Mikko crossed the finish line. Latvala’s Focus RS WRC went off at a hairpin 11.6km from the start and got stuck for three and a half minutes.
Hirvonen and Sordo played their parts as planned, which left Mikko in the unenviable position of being road sweeper on Saturday, with only a three second head start over the Citroens behind.
Eighteen seconds behind Sordo in the standings, Loeb too was surprised by the last stage switches. After a spirited recovery on the afternoon’s stages, Petter Solberg holds overnight fourth, 20.7sec behind Loeb.
Petter’s elder brother Henning rounded off the top five places in his Stobart team Ford Focus, but after another difficult opening day he was hoping for a smother ride on Saturday.
photo:Ford