Live WRC Jordan Rally Day 1

Hello and welcome to motorstv.com and live coverage of round 3 of the World Rally Championship, Rally Jordan. Stage one will be underway soon.

START LIST DAY ONE 1 Sébastien Loeb / Daniel Elena Citroen C4 WRC 2 Mikko Hirvonen / Jarno Lehtinen Ford RS Focus WRC 09 3 Jari-Matti Latvala / Miikka Anttila Ford RS Focus WRC 09 4 Sébastien Ogier / Julien Ingrassia Citroen C4 WRC 5 Petter Solberg / Phil Mills Citroen C4 WRC 6 Henning Solberg Ilka Minor Ford RS Focus WRC 08 7 Dani Sordo / Marc Marti Citroen C4 WRC 8 Matthew Wilson / Scott Martin Ford RS Focus WRC 08 9 Frederico Villagra / Jorge Perez Companc Ford RS Focus WRC 08 10 Kimi Raikkonen / Kaj Lindstrom Citroen C4 WRC

Driver Championship 1 Sébastien Loeb 43 points 2 Miko Hirvonen 37 3Jarri-Matti Latvala 25 3 Sébastien Ogier 25 5 Petter Solberg 20 6 Henning Solberg 16 7 Dani Sordo 12 8 Matthew Wilson 6 8 Frederico VIllagra 6 10 Mads Ostberg 4 10 Xevi Pons 4

Manufacture Championship 1 BP Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team 67 points 2 Citroen Total World Rally Team 61 3 Citroen Kunior Team 32 4 Stobart M-Sport Ford Rally Team 28 5 Munchi’s Ford World Rally Team 8

Hirvonen ready to attack…but it won’t be easy! Ford has carried out a comprehensive test on gravel roads in southern Sardinia, during which Mikko Hirvonen completed 778km at the wheel of a Focus RS WRC, while Jari-Matti Latvala put in 367km. "We've analysed the reasons why we weren't as competitive as we had hoped on the last round in Mexico and tried a few options during our test in Sardinia this week. I'm confident we'll be fully competitive in Jordan," said Hirvonen. While considered to be a gravel event, the actual road surface in Jordan is very similar to tarmac and getting the notes right is a real headache. "There will be loose gravel on the surface for the first pass through the stages, so the car will need a slightly soft set-up. But when the stages are repeated and the roads are clean the set-up will be harder, almost like we use on asphalt. There are no ditches and in some bends it's possible to make big cuts, so we can't make the car too low. It's a compromise set-up between gravel and asphalt. It's the most difficult rally of the year on which to make pace notes," he added. "It's fast and high speed sections are punctuated by small crests. But suddenly the rhythm can change and you come over a crest to find a series of hairpin bends. There are no trees or bushes in the desert to use as sight lines so the notes must be pin-point accurate.

Revenge for Loeb and Sordo In 2008, the last time the WRC raced in Jordan, Sébastien Loeb had a 34 second lead when he experienced a freak head on collision with South African Conrad Rautenbach on a road section that concluded with a rare non-points scoring result for the six-time world champion. The 2010 points leader is looking to keep the momentum going from his crushing victory in Mexico, but admits it will be a tough weekend. “We dominated in Mexico but we can’t relax as I know that our rivals will be back at their very best next weekend," he said. "Another victory would obviously be a big boost for us and for Citroen; it’s not going to be an easy rally. The stages take place right in the middle of the desert; there are no markers and we’re often running blind, so it’s easy to hit one of the big rocks that line the route. We have to be very precise when we’re making notes. Sordo earned a runner-up result in 2008 and wants to make up for some difficult times in the first two rounds of the season; road position on day one could work in the Spaniard’s favour. “Our results in Sweden and Mexico were not in keeping with our potential, "he acknowledged. "What’s very positive is that we’ll be seventh on the road in Jordan. On Friday, we’ll have the advantage of a route that’s been well swept by the front-runners. A podium finish would be a good result for Mark Marti and me.”

A new C4 WRC for Petter After an outstanding second place finish in Mexico, Petter Solberg will have a new Citroen C4 WRC and upgraded engine at his disposal this weekend. “We started the year with the 2008-spec engine and this is the 2009 version,” said team manager of the Petter Solberg World Rally Team Ken Rees. “It’s not a big improvement on power as such but it’s got more torque and is hopefully more drivable.” The new C4, which has only just been put together will be used this weekend and in the following round in Turkey in two weeks time.

No pain, looking for gains Kimi Raikkonen reported no back pain following a promising test in France prior to Rally Jordan. Three weeks after aggravating an old back injury in Mexico, the 30-year old Finn feels fine and is ready to put in a strong run on the third round of the season. “The test went really well: we were able to have a bit more time in the car, which is what I need most,” said Raikkonen. “There was no real pain in the back and I’m feeling good: I’m looking forward to the rally. But Jordan is probably the most unfamiliar territory we will face so far. The plan is certainly to try to get to the end. We want to see where we are compared to everyone else, and gradually try to reduce the gap. It’s just a question of experience.”

Citroen goes underwater and looks to camel hair to improve chances in Jordan ! Being the first car on the road in a gravel rally is never an envious position, but Citroen believes it has a solution. For the past few weeks the French squad has tested with two miniature brushes cleverly installed in the front spoiler of the C4 to better clean the road and increase tyre grip. The new spoiler also improves air flow beneath the car and increase down force. “The ongoing problem of sweeping drove us to examine different technical solutions”, said Némo Broomstick, the engineer in charge of the project. “After several test sessions in a special underwater wind tunnel, we decided on the camel hair mini-sweepers, which is particularly well adapted to the desert stages this weekend. Thanks to this radical innovation, we think we’ve improved Sébastien’s and Dani’s chances of victory a hundredfold!”

img src="/sites/default/files/livecoverage/images/info.gif" align="left" hspace="2">S-WRC Andersson is back, Prokup passes… Per Gunnar Anderssson returns to the S-WRC, while class leader Martin Prokup takes a pass. After an impressive win in what was a guest appearance in the season opener, ‘P-G’ has signed with Czech JM Racing Team for the rest of the season. The 25 points in Sweden has put the twice J-WRC champion in the title race in the all new class for S2000 cars. With Prokup’s absence any one of six drivers could step on to the top step of the podium on Saturday. Joining Andersson in the Skoda Fabia camp are Eyvind Brynildsen and Patrick Sandall. Mexico S-WRC victor, Xevi Pons, Janne Tuohino and Michal Kosciuszko and former Finnish national champion Jari Ketomaa, driving for the new Chinese team, Shanghai FCACA Rally Team, will all be in Ford Fiesta S2000s. With a strong entry for Rally Jordan, the S-WRC division should be every bit as intense and exciting as the WRC class itself.

What you need to know aboutSS1: Rumman Forest. 15.34km The start in Jerash has brought the picturesque northern forest stage of Rumman into play, and it’s the only new stage of this year's rally. Rumman (Arabic for pomegranate) is completely different to the other stages of the event, because it runs through a lush pine forest. It starts off with a downhill section on a chalk road which is covered in a fine dust for the first five kilometres. Soon after it levels off to become narrow and twisty as it snakes between the trees. Between 5km and 9km the gravel gets deeper, but the tight and technical character remains right until the end. In places this stage looks like one from Rally Cyprus.

Mikko Hirvonen won the 2008 Rally Jordan, the only time the WRC has competed in the Middle Eastern country.

: Sébastien Loeb is th first car on the road in the 2010 Rally Jordan.

Hirvonen has started and at the first split is 0.3s behind Loeb.

Latvala is running and is 0.5s quicker than Lob at split one.

Hirvonen is 8.2s slower than Loeb at split 2. The Ford driver might have an issue!

Ogier has matched Loeb's time at split one.

Latvala is 1.6s quicker than Loeb at split 2.

Hirvonen may have spun, but he is now running at the same pace as Loeb at split 3.

Latvala is 2.5s quicker than Loeb after 10ks and 11 better than team mate Hirvonen.

Loeb is in. "There is no grip, we were very slow. We lost time and could'nt do anything more. I had no grip at all!"

12:17.7s for Loeb

No damage to the Ford of Hirvonen. "We lost a lot of time on one corner with a half spin,and stalled the engine. It isn't a good start to the rally for us."

12:28.2 for Hirvonen, 10.5s slower than Loeb.

Jari-Matti Latvala is 5.6 seconds quicker than Loeb after SS1 and said to WRC radio: "It was a good start but not perfect, it was very slippery but it was okay."

Sébastien Ogier: "It was really slippery. I didn't take any riska. We have a good road position and we're trying to puti n a good drive and we will see where we are at the end of the day."

Ogier is 1.4s slower than Latvala.

Peter Solberg is 0.4 behind Latvala. "It was okay, but we could have done better, there is a problem with the fornt of the car but we will fix it."

Sordo is 2.2s behind Latvala at the final split.

Henning Solberg is 3.6 seconds slower than Latvala. he says he is quite happy with the set up on the car and feels comfortable.

Dani Sordo says there is a lot of gravel on the raod and it is really slippery, but we will see later on. "My road position is not bad being 7th, but even so it is very difficult."

Matthew Wilson : "We got a slow start, there was a massive stone in the road in the opening kilometre and the road surface was very slippery." Wilson is 13.9s slower than leader Latvala afer SS1.

"12:38.8s for Kimi Raikkonen, slowest of the WRC competiors, 26.7s slower than Latvala.

PG Andersson in the S-WRC has gone 8.8s faster than Raikkonen in the WRC Citroen, impressive!

TOP TEN SS1 1 Latvala 2 P. Solberg +0.4s 3 Sordo +1.0s 4 Ogier + 1.4s 5 H. Solberg + 3.6s 6 Loeb + 5.6s 7 Wilson + 13.9s 8 Hirvonen + 16.1s 9 Villagra +16.6s 10 Andersson + 17.9s

What you need to know abuot SS 2 Wadi Shueib. 8.65km...Run in the opposite direction in 2008, the event’s shortest stage runs along the side of a valley and will present a tough mental and physical challenge to the drivers as they pass through sea level towards the lowest point on earth. It’s not a place to make a mistake either, because almost the whole section has a steep drop on the right-hand side. There's lots of gravel pretty much everywhere, so the first cars will have a good deal of sweeping to do. The stage begins with a steep uphill section, and then follows the contours of the hillside before dropping down into the valley for the finish.

SS2 is underway. Sébastien Loeb will have to continue to sweep the road for those behind. The Frenchman could drop lots of time today and for sure he has no intention of leading after day one !

Hirvonen is 0.4s quicker than Loeb after the first kilometre.

Latvala is 1.7 seconds quicker than Loeb at split one.

Hirvonen is 1 seconds slower than Loeb after 5ks.

Loeb has completed stage 2 in 7:9.6s

Hirvonen is next through at 7:09.6s, equal time to Loeb.

Latvala is 3 seconds quicker at the final split.

Latvala stops the clock at 7:05.2s, 4.4s faster than Loeb and Hirvonen.

Ogier is next at 7:10.8s, 5.6s adrift from Latvala.

Petter Solberg is next with a time of 7:09.1s; 3.9s behind Latvala

Ogier is 5th fastest so far at 5.6s.

Sordo is in at 4.3s to Latvala.

What you need to know about SS3 Mahes. 20.44km. This is the second longest stage of the rally and has some very big drops by the roadside in places. It starts tight and twisty with a steep climb along a high ridge with lots of gravel on the hard-packed surface. The narrow road snakes along the side of the hill with a big drop on the right. After about 4km it drops downhill, with lots of tight, cambered corners until it reaches the bottom of the valley at the midpoint. From there on it’s an undulating piece of road that is open and quick along the top of a ridge line. Sometimes it’s uphill, sometimes downhill but there’s always lots of gravel so it could be slippery. The stage ends alongside a huge dam.

TOP TEN SS 2 1 Latvala 2 P. Solberg +3.9s 3 Sordo +4.3s 4 Loeb + 4.4s 5 Hirvonen +4.4s 6 Ogier + 5.6s 7 H. Solberg + 8.4s 8 Andersson + 11.8s 9 Wilson + 13.6s 10 Villagra +14.1s

OVERALL AFTER SS 2 1 Latvala 2 P. Solberg +4.3s 3 Sordo +5.3s 4 Ogier + 7.0s 5 Loeb + 10.0s 6 H. Solberg + 12.0s 7 Hirvonen + 20.5s 8 Wilson + 27.5s 9 Andersson + 29.7s 10 Villagra +30.7s

Hirvonen is 3.2s quicker than Loeb atsplit 2.

Latvala is 6 seconds clear of Loeb at split 2.

Loeb is through at 15:00.7. "There is absolutely no grip, but there is less gravel, but I have to create the racing line."

Latvala is 9.4 seconds faster than Loeb at the final split.

Hirvonen is in "It is getting better, I don't know how Sébastien is doing. There is less gravel and it is hard but I am a lot happier with my performance."

14.55.3s for Hirvonen, 5.4s faster than Loeb.

Latvala on WRC radio has said: "I lost some time not being able to cut the corner like Loeb and Hirvonen did."

Latvala's time is 5.1s faster than Hirvonen and 10.5s than Loeb.

Latvala has been given a 10 second penalty for arriving one minute late to the start of the stage!

Petter Solberg is though,with the best time so far at 14:49.2. "I got a 10 second penalty like Jari for being late to the start of the stage. It is really difficult but that is how it is. The road section was very tight and I couldn't do anything about the traffic. I am going to talk to the marshals to see if we can do something about the penalty."

Ogire is third quick at 5.8s to Latvala.

 

: Sordo says he had some problems braking for the slower corners but all the same he set an incredible time of 14:44.1s, 5.1s quicker than Petter Solberg.

S2000 leader, P-G Andersson has stopped in the stage!

Patrik Sandal has also stopped in the stage.

WRC radio reports that there could be other drivers penalised for arriving late to the start of stage 3.

Andersson hit a stone damaging both front wheels.

TOP TEN SS 3 1 Sordo 2 P. Solberg +5.1s 3 Latvala +6.1s 4 Ogier + 10.9s 5 Hirvonen +11.2s 6 Loeb + 16.6s 7 H. Solberg + 16.6s 8 Wilson + 45.0s 9 Villagra +14.1s 10 Raikkonen + 57.6s

OVERALL AFTER SS 3 1 Sordo 2Latvala +0.8s 3 P. Solberg +4.1s 4 Ogier + 12.6s 5 Loeb + 21.3s 6 Hirvonen + 26.4s 7 H. Solberg + 31.8s 8 Wilson + 54.5s 9 Villagra +1:10.4s 10 Raikkonen + 1:37.6s

Loeb as completed stage 4 in 8:18.7. "I am not sure the afternoon will be easier. It will be very bad for the first cars. It is hard to say if it is my driving or the road position."

Hirvonen is in "I agree with Sébastien it is going to be tough in the second loop. The gravel is making it very difficult. It has been okay after my spin this morning." 8:20.5 for Hirvonen, 1.8s slower than Loeb.

Latvala is in..."The car is good, but the time penalty has spoiled our morning. The team will not protest the penalty. We will have to see how it goes this afternoon, but it is a shame. 8:18.1s, 0.6s quicker than Loeb and 2.4s better than Hirvonen.

Ogier is next to comlete stage four. "It wasn't a bad stage, but there were some big rocks on the road that made it tricky. 8:20.3s for the Frenchman, 3rd best time so far.

Solberg is in..."It is much warmer here than in Mexico and I can't get the balance right for the brakes. We'll have to do some work at the service area. Solberg's time is 8:16.3s, quickest so far.

Sordo says he has a throttle problem and the surface is really slippery and difficult. Sordo's time is 8:19.3s, slower than Petter Solberg.

Kimi Raikkonen: "I am not happy with how the morning has gone. I wasn't able to push hard.I couldn't find any grip."

TOP TEN SS 4 1 P. Solberg 2 Latvala +1.8s 3 Loeb + 2.4s 4 Sordo + 3.0s 5 Ogier + 4.0s 6 Hirvonen + 4.2s 7 H. Solberg + 16.6s 8 Wilson + 45.0s 9 Villagra +20.2s 10 Raikkonen + 32.2s

OVERALL AFTER SS 4 1 Latvala 2 Sordo +0.4s 3 P. Solberg +1.5s 4 Ogier + 14.0s 5 Loeb + 21.1s 6 Hirvonen + 28.0s 7 H. Solberg + 41.6s 8 Wilson + 1:07.1s 9 Villagra +1:28.0s 10 Raikkonen + 2:07.2s

April Fools! The lads at Citroen have wound up the motor racing world with a bit of a prank with their road sweeping devices developed in an underwater wind tunnel.Good joke boys, now go out and win Rally Jordan !

CORRECTION :OVERALL AFTER SS 4 1 Latvala 2 Sordo +0.4s 3 P. Solberg +1.5s 4 Ogier + 14.0s 5 Loeb + 21.1s 6 Hirvonen + 28.0s 7 H. Solberg + 41.6s 8 Wilson + 1:07.1s 9 Villagra +1:28.0s 10 Kosciuszko + 1:50.0s

Dani Sordo says an engine mapping problem cost him time this morning, especially in the slower corners. "The stones that were kicked onto the road by cars ahead of me also made it very hard to drive as fast as I would have liked."

CORRECTION TOP TEN SS 4 1 P. Solberg 2 Latvala +1.8s 3 Loeb + 2.4s 4 Sordo + 3.0s 5 Ogier + 4.0s 6 Hirvonen + 4.2s 7 H. Solberg + 16.6s 8 Wilson + 45.0s 9 Al-Attiyah +17.2s 10 Kosciuszko + 19.4s

: CORRECTION OVERALL AFTER SS 4 1 Latvala 2 Sordo +0.4s 3 P. Solberg +1.5s 4 Ogier + 14.0s 5 Loeb + 21.1s 6 Hirvonen + 28.0s 7 H. Solberg + 41.6s 8 Wilson + 1:07.1s 9 Al-Attiyah +1:26.1s 10 Villagra +1:28.0s

ALL ROAD PENALTIES HAVE BEEN DISMISSED !!!

Mikko Hirvonen: "I lost time on stage one with a spin and two engine stalls. I am happy with how it has been going but we'll make some changes on the car. It is difficult to tell how it well go this afternoon.Sord, Latvala and Solberg are far ahead and I don't know if they are going to slow down," said Mikko Hirvonen.

Jari-Matti Latvala speasking to WRC radio said: "It is fantastic the penalties have been relaxed. It was so tight on the road sections this morning. We're in a good fight with Citroen, the car feels good and we'll keep going like this and we'll see how it goes this afternoon. I won't make any changes to the car it is running very good. For the moment we're not thinking about tactics. For sure I don't want to be the first car on the the raod tomorrow, but sometimes you don't have a choice. It is hard to say how much time you will lose being the first car on the road but for sure you do."

When asked about what he can do as the first car on the road Loeb said to WRC radio "I don't want to lose too much time. The only thing I can do is drive as hard as possible. Dani might be able to help me, but I don't know. It was difficult sweeping the roads, but it was better than I had feared."

Petter Solber on WRC radio: "My morning worked out really well. There was a lot more loose gravel than we expected and now we will see this afternoon, how people work out their road position. I am trying to do the same thing that I did in Mexico. No problems, everything is under conrtol so far."

What you need to know about SS5Wadi Shueib 2 (8.65km) Run in the opposite direction in 2008, the event’s shortest stage runs along the side of a valley and will present a tough mental and physical challenge to the drivers as they pass through sea level towards the lowest point on earth. It’s not a place to make a mistake either, because almost the whole section has a steep drop on the right-hand side. There's lots of gravel pretty much everywhere, so the first cars will have a good deal of sweeping to do. The stage begins with a steep uphill section, and then follows the contours of the hillside before dropping down into the valley for the finish.

: Mikko Hirvonen speaking to WRC radio on Wednesday. "Mexico wasn't the best rally for us, we are now six points behind, so we'll be looking to catch up Sébastien this weekend.We've always struggled in Mexico, namybe it is the engine-gearbox combinaiton we have. I knew after my win in Sweden that Sébastien was still going to be tough. Last time we raced here we couldn't keep up with him, he was so fast, until his accident. It is a different rally this time. It is a lot colder it is 20°, but it isn"t like it was two years ago.We have had to change the notes from the last time we were here. They have made a lot of changes , so it is going to be challenging.I am sure we will have more speed than in Mexico. We have enough speed here to fight for the win." I think there are six cars that can win, which is exciting."

SS5 Sébastien Loeb is the first car on the road.

6:51.0s for Loeb ..."There was a lot more grip than the first pass. It was much better, but I don't know how I did compared to the others."

6:49s for Hirvonen, he says: "It is a different rally now, says Mikko Hirvonen. It was a lot better, a lot more grip."

Latvala is 7.5 seconds quicker than Loeb. "Just one small mistake, otherwise it went really weell. It is easier this afternoon, very good run for us." He is now 28.6s ahead of Loeb, overall.

Ogier is 8.8s slower than Latvala. When asked if he is slowing on purpose, Ogier very sheepishly answered. It seems tactics are now in play!

Petter Solberg is 5.9 seconds slower than Latvala. "The car is much better now. We can go faster on the next few stages. I think we now starting to play the tactics game."

Sordo is in with the 5th best time, he is now down to 3rd overall at 9.1s to Latvala.

SS6 has begun,Hirvonen is one second quicker than Loeb.

TOP TEN SS 5 TOP TEN SS 5 1 Latvala 2 Hirvonen +5.2s 3 P. Solberg + 5.9s 4 Loeb + 7.5s 5 Sordo + 8.7s 6 Ogier + 8.8s 7 H. Solberg + 11.2s 8 Wilson + 16.0s 9 Villagra + 18.9s 10 Raikkonen + 27.0s

OVERALL AFTER SS 5 1 Latvala 2 P. Solberg +7.4s 3 Sordo +9.1s 4 Ogier + 22.8s 5 Loeb + 28.6s 6 Hirvonen + 33.2s 7 H. Solberg + 52.8s 8 Wilson + 1:23.1s 9 Villagra +1:46.9s 10 Raikkonen +2:34.2s

Hirvonen is 2.3s quicker than Loeb at spllit 2. Latvala is 1.3s faster at split 1.

Hirvonen is now 2.5s quicker at split 3. Loeb will be crossing the line of SS6 in just a moment.

Latvala continues to push hard. he is 4.5s faster at split 3.

Loeb is in with a time of 14:24.4s.

"It is going much better in the afternoon, but it seeems it is better for everyone. I will continue and we will see. I have'nt made any mistakes. We maybe made a mistake with the suspension this morning.I do not want to be first on the road tomorrow."

Hirvonen is in with a time of 14:24.6s. "It went okay. There's nothing to be worried about, but the next stage will be interesting. We'll see what we are going to do."

There is a power shortage in the paddock and the teams do not have timing screens. They may not know how to plan the strategy if they can't see the times.

Latvala is at 14:19.5s. 4.9s quicker than Loeb. "I wanted to build up my lead, but I don't think there is enough time. So, we will have to see with Mikko."

Ogier is in with the slowest time and he's still ahead of Loeb, overall. It is now obvious there are tactics being used. "It is my target to be ahead of Loeb, tonight. I am just doing my race. I could end up leading tonight", said Ogier.

Solberg sets the quickest time, 1.8 seconds ahead of Latvala.

: Nasser Al-Attiyah has crashed on SS5.

TOP TEN SS 6 1P. Solberg 2 Latvala 3 Sordo + 4.2s 4 Loeb + 6.7s 5 Hirvonen + 6.9s 6 Ogier + 7.1s 7 H. Solberg + 18.7s 8 Wilson + 18.7s 9 Villagra + 27.2s 10 Raikkonen + 52.4s

What you need to know about SS7: Mount Nebo - (11.09km). A location famed by Biblical stories where Moses looked out over the Holy Land. It is now the location of an ancient church which attracts 100,000 visitors annually. The stage starts twisty and fast with a short downhill sequence of hairpins before crossing a concrete bridge with a harsh compression. From there it gets faster, with good grip and lots of good cuts to help the cars stay on the road at speed. There are a couple of blind crests at 2.4km and 4.6km. From 7km there’s a tight twisty downhill section and a lot more gravel on the road and some big rocks on the outside of the corners. There’s a quarry nearby and a lot of sand has been carried onto the stage. From the 7km point to the end the road is fast and scary - the road runs along the side of a hill with a big drop into a gorge on the right-hand side. It’s flowing and fast all the way to the end.

This final stage of the day will be interesting as all the leaders will probably employ tactics and slow down in attempt to not have to open the road tomorrow !

OVERALL AFTER SS 6 1 Latvala 2 P. Solberg +5.6s 3 Sordo +11.5s 4 Ogier + 28.1s 5 Loeb + 33.5s 6 Hirvonen + 38.3s 7 H. Solberg + 1:09.7s 8 Wilson + 1:48.5s 9 Villagra +2:26.1s 10 Raikkonen +3:24.8s

Al-Attiyah and P-G Andersson will be back tomorrow in superrally format after their respective accidents today.

SS7 has begun, watch for the leaders to postion themselves for tomorrow.

Loeb and Hirvonen are on equal time at split one.

Latvala is 0.2s quicker at split one. The key drivers in this stage will be Ogier, Sordo and Solberg.

Ogier is -0.5s from Loeb.

 

Loeb is in at 8.00.6s.

If I slow down, everyone will slow down. My job is to push. It has been a very hard day. I think Sébastien Ogier will be ahead of me, but he might slow and I'll be in the lead, which I don't want to be.

Hirvonen is through, 5.6 seconds slower than Loeb. "We will be behind Sébastien tomorrow. I hope it was the right thing to do. You never know how this kind of day can go, so we will just do what we can do tomorrow. We will be 10 seconds behind Loeb, so we'll have to see."

8:02.3 for Latvala. "We spoke with Mikko and our job was to go flat out in the stage." Latvala is still in the lead.

Ogier is an at 8:04.1s "It is good for us. I am ahead of Loeb and behind Latvala. That is what we planned for today."

Petter Solberg slowed right down ahead of the finish line. An obvious tactic form Solberg. He will start Saturday behind Loeb in 3rd position. "I tried something, I can do what ever I want and I think I a min control. It is going to be a very difficult rally. It has been a very good day and I did exactly what I wanted to do. The car is not so bad now, I am very happy, we have been very competitive.

Sordo is coming in at a snail's pace. He is trying to slot in for a good starting spot for Saturday. Sordo is now 6th overall, behind Hirvonen and team mate Loeb. "I went very slow at the end. it worked out good. The car has been okay. I am really happy to be in this position for tomorrow."

Sorry, friends the timing screens have gone down. The only times available are at the finish line. We will bring you up to speed on the ten in the stage and overall as soon as we can.

Kimi Raikkonen speaking to WRC radio: "This was the most difficult day in a rally car for me. You realy need the experience for these conditions. My goal was just to get through the day."

: Overall after SS7 1 Jari-Matti Latvala 2 Sébastien Ogier + 30.2s 3 Sébastien Loeb + 31.8 4 Petter Solberg + 32.5s 5 Mikko Hirvonen + 42.3s 6 Dani Sordo + 45.5s 7 Henning Solberg + 1:21.0s 8 Matthew WIlson + 2:01.2s 9 Frederico Villagra +2:48.3s 10 Kimi Raikkonen + 3:50.4s