2007 Rally of Great Britain - Leg Two

[ianwilly]

1. BP-Ford


Newly-crowned FIA World Rally champions* BP-Ford continued to dominate the top of the leaderboard during today's second leg of Rally GB. Mikko Hirvonen and Jarmo Lehtinen returned to Swansea with a 35.5sec advantage over team-mates Marcus Grönholm and Timo Rautiainen after a second day's competition in the rain-soaked forests of south Wales. Both pairings are at the wheel of a Ford Focus RS World Rally Car.

Marcus Grönholm/Timo Rautiainen: "There was no stress and no pressure today as I can do nothing but wait and see what happens to Loeb. There's no plan to push to catch Mikko. It would be stupid for me to do that and make a mistake. My plan is to stay in second. It would be good to win my final rally but that's not my priority - the title is. It was great to win in the Millennium Stadium, though. There was a fantastic atmosphere and I really appreciated the ovation the fans gave me at the end of the stage."

Mikko Hirvonen/Jarmo Lehtinen: "Although we had some rain the visibility was better and I could see where I was going. That's two days down and one to go, and I'm still at the front so I'm not complaining about the conditions too much. I was too cautious on the first stage this morning and Marcus took some time back so I pushed as hard as I could after that. On the middle stage this afternoon I went straight on at a slippery asphalt junction but that made me even more determined. It will be good to wake up in the morning in the lead, but I'm not taking anything for granted. Marcus might want to give me one last lesson before he retires so I will have to stay alert and keep the pace high to keep him behind me,"


2. Citroen Total

It had already been dark for some time when the Citroën C4 WRCs of first Dani Sordo/Marc Martí, then Sébastien Loeb/Daniel Elena pulled into the service park in Swansea this evening after the second leg of the 2007 Wales Rally GB. The Spanish pair continue to figure in fifth place overall, while Seb and Daniel still have a footing on the provisional podium.

Sebastien Loeb/Daniel Elena: "The stages themselves were different, too. There were more long, fast corners which call for a more fluid style as you flow from turn to turn. I've always enjoyed this sort of road here in previous years but it was quite frustrating this time round. However, if we end up taking the title, that will soon be forgotten. We have stuck to our game-plan so far and we are currently third with a handy lead over our closest chasers and just one day to go.!"

Dani Sordo/Marc Marti: "The stages are difficult but I succeeded in posting some quick times compared to rivals with more experience of these forests. The amount of grip changes all the time and it can be easy to get caught out under braking. We also found ourselves aquaplaning in the mud quite a lot. Once again, I have been able to measure how important experience is on the loose if you want to be both quick and consistent on a stage from start to finish."


3. Subaru

Subaru World Rally Team drivers Petter Solberg and Phil Mills finished the second day of Wales Rally GB in fourth place overall after battling more treacherous winter conditions. Ahead of the final day of competition, their team mates Xevi Pons and Chris Atkinson hold sixth and ninth places respectively.

Petter Solberg/Phil Mills: "Today has not been so bad for us, but the
conditions have been difficult again. We struggled quite a lot actually. The final spectator stage was great; a lot of Subaru flags and Welsh flags for Phil. We always get a good welcome here. The stages tomorrow are very, very difficult. Very muddy and slippery. We will see; we will try hard to do some good stage times and get a good result. That's the main thing."

Chris Atkinson/Stephane Prevot: "Today has not been so easy for us. The car was better in the afternoon after we made some changes but it has not been easy in these conditions. We found more pace this afternoon and I took a few more risks to try and put a gap to Matthew because he's doing some good times. The main thing for us now is to make sure we get to the finish and get some good points."

Xavier Pons/Xavier Amigo: "We got off to a good start today and I was feeling more comfortable in the car, but an accident on SS8 meant we couldn't push hard and instead had to concentrate on getting the car back to service.
With the car back to full strength in the afternoon I felt confident to push harder and the times improved as the day went on, but SS12 was hard when I couldn't clean the screen. Tomorrow the roads are very different, but I hope we can continue this better feeling."


4. OMV Kronos Citroen

The OMV Kronos Citroen World Rally Team didn't encounter any noteworthy problems on day two of the "Wales Rally GB". Unfortunately they didn't move up, either. Matthew Wilson (GB/Ford Focus WRC) in the Citroen Xsara WRC seems out of reach and Xavier Pons (E/Subaru Impreza WRC), in ninth place, can be easily kept at bay. The OMV driver is nevertheless discontent even if everything points to a fifth consecutive finish within points-range.

Manfred Stohl/Ilka Minor: "It is a bit frustrating since last year we fought for victory. This year we're competing for eighth place. Somehow I expected more. But that probably was wishful thinking. If one takes a look at our results this season then we are right at where were at during the last 15 rallies."


5. Stobart M-Sport Ford

The Stobart VK M-Sport Ford rally team have shown once again they will be a future force to be reckoned with after a stunning display on leg 2 of Wales Rally GB, the final round of the 2007 FIA World Rally Championship.
Jari-Matti Latvala/Miikka Anttila have put day 1 woes behind them and shattered the field today by winning every forest stage and advancing themselves back with a chance of a top-ten finish. Joining in the splendour were team-mates Matthew Wilson/Michael Orr who have put in one of the best legs of their career, with consistently fast pace, to finish the day in seventh overall.

Henning Solberg/Cato Menkerud: "It has been going OK today but we are just getting through and seeing what we can do. I have been trying a new driving style today and basically using the day as a bit of a test. Today has been much better than yesterday and at least now I can see out of the windscreen.
I will try and concentrate more on my driving as I have a better feeling today and hopefully we can improve on this tomorrow. There was a bit of fog on the last stage and our lights were a bit too high which lost us some time but I have set some good times today which I am happy with. I will try my best tomorrow and finish the event which is very important; to have as much experience in the world rally car as possible."

Jari-Matti Latvala/Miikka Anttila: "It has been a great feeling today. The car has done everything it is designed to do and the tyres were perfect so I can't ask for much more. It is disappointing about yesterday but these things happen and it is good to get back out today and important to get a good balance with the car for future events. It was definitely an advantage being third on the road here as the grip levels were good and the road conditions more pleasant. I have just been very relaxed today and had no big moments as I have had no reason to push hard so to produce these times is a great feeling. I will try and keep the same feeling tomorrow and see if we can keep it going."

Matthew Wilson/Michael Orr: "I'm really pleased with how today has gone and it has been a great battle between Chris [Atkinson] and myself all day. We have had no big mistakes all day and it has just had a nice rhythm to it. We lost a little bit of time on the last stage as one of the lights began to flicker but apart from that the car has been perfect. We still need to tidy up on the slower stuff but ok it has gone pretty well and it's lots of fun out there. Generally the feeling is very good, the car is working well and the confidence is high as a result. The road surface has also been more consistent today which has helped. I think the gap to Chris is still close enough to challenge tomorrow but they are two tricky stages, especially if it is wet, so we will have to wait and see what happens in the morning."


6. Munchis Ford

No information available at time of going to press.


7. CRT Skoda-Kopecky
No information available at time of going to press, please check site later.

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Remaining Event Schedule

Sunday 2 December: Leg 3 Swansea - Swansea
Serv F Swansea (10 mins) 06.25
SS14 Brechfa 1 28.89km 07.46
SS15 Trawscoed 1 28.24km 08.33
Serv G Swansea (30 mins) 10.28
SS16 Brechfa 2 28.89km 12.09
SS17 Trawscoed 2 28.24km 12.56
Finish Cardiff 15.10
Total 114.26km
Rally total 359.54km

[Mr Squidian]

For some reason i can see chris atkinson becoming big in the near future..