HIRVONEN SETS EARLY PACE THEN CRASHES

+ Click to Enlarge FLYING FINN: Jari-Matti Latvala (Ford) led his home Rally of Finland after Day 1 - and this is why! Photo: Reuters

July 31, 2010
By Alan Baldwin

Ford's Jari-Matti Latvala led his home Rally of Finland on Friday after team mate and early pace-setter Mikko Hirvonen crashed out on the fourth stage.

Hirvonen, the 2009 winner, and navigator Jarmo Lehtinen escaped injury with the car rolling several times on a right-hand corner the Finn had described as one of his favourites.

Ford team boss Malcolm Wilson said: "It was the biggest accident he's ever had but he'll come back from it. It was a very violent accident, a typical Finland accident and I'm just pleased they're both OK."

Hirvonen, third in the championship behind the Citroen pairing of Sebastien Loeb and Sebastien Ogier, said he was travelling at 140km/h when he lost control after coming over a crest in the road.

He said: "A crash like that is not going to distract me or scare me. It's done and we'll go to the next rally and try to go as fast as we did here.

Latvala was 9.1 seconds ahead of Petter Solberg's privately-entered Citroen after the day's 11 stages.

Solberg, fastest on the opening stage, had taken the lead after Hirvonen's accident and deliberately kept his distance to avoid being first on the road on Saturday and having to sweep the loose gravel.

Six-times World champion Loeb moved up to fourth place, 32 seconds off the pace, after damaging his car's front bumper in Stage 3. Team mate and fellow-Frenchman Ogier was third.

But Loeb said: "The car is undriveable. Every corner I try to steer, the car is going straight. I have to turn in on the brakes. The car is impossible to drive. I was surprised the car was like that. Incredible, it's missing all the aero effects." - Reuters

Standings after the first leg of the Rally of Finland on Friday
1 Jari-Matti Latvala (Finland) Ford 1hr10min30.7
2 Petter Solberg (Norway) Citroen +9.1
3 Sebastien Ogier (France) Citroen +21.8
4. Sebastien Loeb (France) Citroen +32.0
5 Daniel Sordo (Spain) Citroen +43.7
6 Matthew Wilson (Britain) Ford +2min35.3
7 Juha Kankkunen (Finland) Ford +3min10.7
8 Kimi Raikkonen (Finland) Citroen +3min18.2
9 Juho Hanninen (Finland) Skoda +3min44.3
10 Matti Rantanen (Finland) Skoda +4min25.4

Special stage winners
Solberg 2 (SS1, SS11)
Hirvonen 2 (SS2, SS3)
Ogier 1 (SS4)
Sordo 1 (SS5)
Latvala 3 (SS6, SS7, SS9)
Loeb 2 (SS8, SS10)