RALLY NEW ZEALAND - AFTER STAGE 9
Fifty-four of the original 57 crews left Hamilton this morning for the second day of this 11th round of the FIA World Rally Championship, eight of those starting under SupeRally rules having retired yesterday. They all faced a morning loop of three speed tests to the north-west, close to the Tasman Sea coastline near Port Waikato, before a repeat of the short test at the rally's Mystery Creek base.
Leaders Mikko Hirvonen and Jarmo Lehtinen faced the task of starting first in their Ford Focus RS World Rally Car. Overcast but dry conditions ensured the fast, flowing roads winding through the lush countryside were covered in plenty of gravel. It meant the BP Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team pair would act as a 'plough', sweeping away the stones to leave a cleaner and faster line for those behind.
The 28-year-old Finnish driver suffered most on the opening 17.22km Port Waikato test, posting 10th fastest time and losing almost 12sec of his overnight 27.8sec advantage to closest rival Sébastien Loeb. Hirvonen was second in the damper and less slippery 13.78km Possum and seventh in the 31.58km Franklin. He ended the morning with second through the short Mystery Creek stage to return to service there with a 5.3sec advantage over the Frenchman.
"I knew we would lose time but we lost more than I thought," admitted Hirvonen. "There was so much loose gravel on the surface that conditions were really slippery and that's what I expected. This afternoon I need to stay as close to Loeb as possible and lose as little time as I can. This is the hardest day of the rally because each stage is driven only once so there's no chance for me to drive on cleaner roads. It's a balance because if I push too hard, it's so slippery that I lose even more time."
Team-mates Jari-Matti Latvala and Miikka Anttila re-started in fourth in their Focus RS WRC, one of three crews clustered behind Hirvonen that were covered by just 2.3sec. They were third in the start order and benefited from cleaner road conditions. Latvala was third through Port Waikato and Possum before posting quickest time in Franklin. The 23-year-old Finn was sixth in Mystery Creek to reach the lunchtime break having climbed to third, 9.5sec behind Loeb and 11.7sec ahead of Dani Sordo.
"It's a hard battle but my target remains a top three finish and to try to catch Loeb," said Latvala. "I'm pushing hard but not at maximum pace because if I do that then my driving becomes too sideways. The second stage was very technical and I tried to attack too hard and made a few small mistakes."
Leaderboard after stage 9 of 16
1. M Hirvonen/J Lehtinen FIN Ford Focus RS 2hr 20min 55.8sec
2. S Loeb/D Elena FRA Citroen C4 2hr 21min 01.1sec
3. J-M Latvala/M Anttila FIN Ford Focus RS 2hr 21min 10.6sec
4. D Sordo/M Marti ESP Citroen C4 2hr 21min 22.3sec
5. F Duval/P Pivato BEL Ford Focus RS 2hr 22min 37.8sec
6. U Aava/K Sikk EST Citroen C4 2hr 23min 41.7sec
7. P Solberg/P Mills NOR Subaru Impreza 2hr 23min 45.2sec
8. P-G Andersson/J Andersson SWE Suzuki SX4 2hr 24min 43.7sec
9. F Villagra/J Perez Companc ARG Ford Focus RS 2hr 26min 44.9sec
10 T Gardemeister/T Tuominen FIN Suzuki SX4 2hr 26min 56.9sec
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Rick (Rokie)
rtdring@yahoo.com
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