Fight to Finn-ish
Last updated 11:47, Thursday, 02 October 2008
MIKKO HIRVONEN admits he’ll have to see off arch rival Sébastien Loeb in this week’s Rally de España if he’s to stand any chance of winning the World Rally Championship for the Cumbria-based Ford team.
After throwing away victory in the last round in New Zealand, Hirvonen and the Ford team are fired up and promising revenge.
But with three wins from the last three rallies in Spain, Loeb has to be the favourite to do it again and will be aiming to continue his four-year asphalt stranglehold. The Rally de España, which starts tomorrow, could be win or bust for Ford and Hirvonen, who trails his rival by eight points with four events remaining.
The flying Finn, who claimed his first WRC podium in Spain in 2005, said: “The rally seems to be faster and faster each year..!
“It's like driving on a race track and it's crucial to find the correct braking point and the right line through bends.
“We're second in both the manufacturers' and drivers' points so I need to try to beat Sébastien Loeb. This is the first time here with Pirelli's new asphalt tyres so I will try to be very precise with my pace notes during the recce.
To boost its chances Ford has strengthened its squad by replacing newcomer Jari-Matti Latvala with asphalt driving expert Francois Duval in the second Focus for back-to-back events in Spain and Corsica.
n STOBART driver Matthew Wilson Wilson, the son of Ford team director Malcolm Wilson, warmed up for the event by winning the 2008 Colin McRae Forest Stages Rally on Saturday against a star-studded field.
Former World Rally champions, including Bjorn Waldegard, Hannu Mikkola and Ari Vatanen, all joined- Wilson in the event to pay tribute to McRae, who was killed last year in a helicopter crash.
Wilson – targeting a points finish in Catalunya to rubber-stamp his top 10 position in WRC – said: “It was a fantastic event and it was great we could come out here and win it in memory of Colin who was a driver I always looked up to as a young competitor coming into the sport.
