Rally Cyprus Preview

One week after the conclusion of Rally Italia Sardinia, the 2005 FIA World Rally Championship returns to the Mediterranean for round six of the 16-event series, the Cyprus Rally. Beginning on Thursday 12 May with a ceremonial start in the host town of Limassol, the gruelling three-day event will be the first of a trio of hot, gravel rallies scheduled for May and June.

As the slowest, hottest and roughest event of the year, the Cyprus Rally is an endurance test for cars, tyres and drivers alike. Based largely on rock-strewn tracks high in the Troodos Mountains, the event's stages are among the narrowest and twistiest in the Championship. Rocky hairpin bends, thick dust and rutted roads combine to make driving conditions difficult, while scorching temperatures of more than 30°C test drivers' stamina and physical fitness.

The twisty conditions mean cars are expected to record average speeds of just 66kph, barely half those recorded on smooth gravel events like Rally Finland. Low speeds mean reduced airflow to cool the engine and transmission, while suspension and tyres will take a hammering on the rocky roads.

This year the event will run from a single service park located to the north of Limassol. The rally will begin on Friday when crews travel 55km to the start of the longest test of the event, the 38.32kms stage from Lagoudera. The rally route is unchanged from 2004 and each of the three Legs comprises six stages (a group of three repeated) and a total competitive distance of 326.68 kilometres. The winning car is expected to cross the finish ramp in Limassol at 1517hrs on Sunday 15 May.

Cyprus Rally Preview

One week after the conclusion of Rally Italia Sardinia, the 2005 FIA World Rally Championship returns to the Mediterranean for round six of the 16-event series, the Cyprus Rally. Beginning on Thursday 12 May with a ceremonial start in the host town of Limassol, the gruelling three-day event will be the first of a trio of hot, gravel rallies scheduled for May and June.

As the slowest, hottest and roughest event of the year, the Cyprus Rally is an endurance test for cars, tyres and drivers alike. Based largely on rock-strewn tracks high in the Troodos Mountains, the event's stages are among the narrowest and twistiest in the Championship. Rocky hairpin bends, thick dust and rutted roads combine to make driving conditions difficult, while scorching temperatures of more than 30°C test drivers' stamina and physical fitness.

The twisty conditions mean cars are expected to record average speeds of just 66kph, barely half those recorded on smooth gravel events like Rally Finland. Low speeds mean reduced airflow to cool the engine and transmission, while suspension and tyres will take a hammering on the rocky roads.

The special stages are identical to 2004, with much of the competitive distance based in the Troodos Mountains, north of the rally base in Limassol.  All the action is centred around a new service park at the Palais des Sports on the northern edge of the city.  After a ceremonial start in Limassol at 20.30 on Thursday, each of the three legs comprises two identical loops of three stages.  The opening leg is the longest, covering a compact route in the very north of the Troodos, close to the Turkish border.  The middle day is based further south, close to Mt Olympus and west towards the resort of Paphos.  The final leg is the shortest, covering tests north-east of Limassol in the hilly and forested Machairas area.  Drivers face 326.68km in a route of 1063.92km.

Citroen

Hopping from one island to another, Sébastien Loeb/Daniel Elena, François Duval/Stéphane Prévot and their respective Xsara WRCs travel to the legendary birthplace of Aphrodite for Round 6 of the FIA World Rally Championship. A week before Rally Italia Sardinia, Citroën travelled to Greece for a four-day test aimed not only at preparing for Cyprus, but also for the Acropolis Rally and Turkey. With Sébastien Loeb and François Duval taking turns at the wheel, the programme focused on fine-tuning the car's basic rough rally set-up as well as testing the latest rubber from Michelin which enabled the drivers to finalise their respective quotas of 65 tyres. In 2003, Sébastien Loeb, Colin McRae and Carlos Sainz demonstrated the Xsara WRC's remarkable reliability by finishing in close formation in 3rd, 4th and 5th positions. Last year saw the cars of Seb and Carlos combine reliability and performance and the French squad hopes that this will once again be the case this time round.

Sébastien Loeb / Daniel Elena: "In Cyprus, being first on the road isn't easy. It can even be a big handicap on Friday's opening loop. The stages are the same as 2004 and I hope they don't cut up too much. Last year we had the impression that they were just as we had left them after two runs in 2003! As I have said before, the fact that I will serve as 'road sweeper' on the Friday implies that I am leading the championship. For that reason, I would be happy to start every event first on the road…"

Francois Duval / Stephane Prevot: "A podium would be nice! In Sardinia, I made a costly mistake when I turned in a little late on a crest and stupidly lost points. I have got to stay on the road and finish. Given how competitive our car is at the moment, I should be able to keep up with the top three. And with a little luck, I could finish on the podium…"

Subaru

Subaru will take two cars to Cyprus. The two crews of Petter Solberg / Phil Mills and Chris Atkinson / Glenn Macneall will be driving the latest evolution of the Subaru Impreza, the WRC2005. This will be the fourth time Petter Solberg has contested the event. As a driver who relishes technical and twisty gravel stages, Petter is hoping for a repeat of the form that helped him win the event by more than four minutes in 2003. In the second Subaru, Australian Chris Atkinson has not contested the event before. The Subaru rookie will be aiming to gain experience of the rally's difficult stages, while demonstrating a good pace in his Impreza.

Petter Solberg / Phil Mills: "I'm going to go to Cyprus with a different approach; of course we're going to try to win, but we know how difficult it is to do that these days. I'm going to start calm, see where the level is and then go for maximum attack on Saturday. From what I've heard, I think the rally is going to be very rough this year, it depends on how much they've worked on the roads. It's always a hard rally, very rough and bumpy with lots of loose rocks, but it's a rally that I like. We completed a tyre test this week, there was some improvement, but we'll have to wait and see how it works on the rally. You never know properly before you are fighting against the other guys."

Chris Atkinson/Glen Macneall: "Italy was good preparation for Cyprus I think. In Cyprus, we're expecting slightly higher temperatures and slower conditions, which will mean less airflow and higher in-car temperatures. We hope to avoid a repeat of the small incidents we had in Sardinia but continue with the same speeds. It's going to be very rough and I've heard that the stages haven't been repaired from last year, so they're likely to become rutted straight away. With average speeds below 60kph on some stages, it's important to quickly get into a good driving rhythm and avoid losing a lot of time through the long stages. I've been watching video footage of last year's route to familiarise myself with the conditions and am looking to gain as much experience as possible."

Ford

Ford aims to create history on the Cyprus Rally (12 - 15 May) by extending its remarkable points scoring record in the FIA World Rally Championship to 50 consecutive events.  Since the championship was officially launched in 1973, there have been 410 world rallies and no other manufacturer has composed a run of successive points scores that exceeds 35 events. The record-breaking sequence began on the Monte Carlo Rally in 2002.  BP-Ford World Rally Team drivers Toni Gardemeister and Jakke Honkanen and team-mates Roman Kresta and Jan Možný carried the run to 49 when both scored points in Italy earlier this month.  All 49 points finishes have been scored by the Ford Focus RS World Rally Car. Gardemeister and Kresta are the two drivers with the task of taking Ford to its half century.  The Cyprus Rally, round six of the championship, is the first of three consecutive hot weather, rough road events in the eastern Mediterranean.  The Focus RS has built an awesome reputation on events where rocky gravel tracks and high temperatures require a crucial blend of strength, reliability and speed to be successful.  It has won in Cyprus twice in the rally's five years in the championship.

Toni Gardemeister/Jakke Honkanen: "Cyprus is twisty, slow and rough and it's not one of my favourite events.  It's important to drive straight and avoid breaking the car because there are many stones on the road that can inflict heavy damage.  It's difficult to keep a smooth rhythm because the speeds are so low and there is always the temptation to push harder.  The roads are quite flowing but if a driver pushes too hard then the car slides off line, it loses momentum and risks picking up punctures. "Cyprus is hard on tyres.
The roads are abrasive and there is so much acceleration out of corners that there is always the danger of excessive wheelspin.  It's necessary to look after the tyres to ensure they are still working to the maximum towards the end of a group of stages.  It's also important for an engine to have good torque to make the most from the constant acceleration," added Gardemeister.

Roman Kresta/Jan Mozny: "I have in-car video footage from that year and some of the stages are exactly the same as this year.  Before I go out there I will watch the video and get my mind focused on the type of roads that we will experience," he said. "The roads are rough and twisty and in places they are similar to the kind of stages we have just driven in Sardinia.  It will be important to keep a smooth line because there are plenty of stones on the edge of the road.  A good car for Cyprus needs good throttle response, good torque, good suspension and good tyres.  The roads are hard on tyres but I think Michelin proved on the toughest stages in Sardinia that it has the rubber which will be good for Cyprus.  It's a tough rally for drivers as well because the high temperatures mean it's hot in the car and the low speeds provide little air flow through the cockpit. "The Focus is also well-suited to this kind of rally.  It's easy to drive on the slower sections and you don't need an aggressive style, so there is not the risk of pushing too hard and losing the line and time," he added. 

Peugeot

Less than a fortnight after Sardinia, it will be the turn of another Mediterranean island – Cyprus – to host a round of the World Rally Championship. Peugeot, who won this event in 2002, will be out to consolidate its lead in the Manufacturers' points table, while the 307 WRC drivers Marcus Grönholm and Markko Märtin will be looking to hit the ground running. Marcus Grönholm has finished this event on one occasion when he won it outright in 2002. The two-times World Champion prefers high-speed rallies such as New Zealand and Finland, but he has shown that he understands the secret of being quick in Cyprus. After the frustration of being eliminated from the battle for top spot in Sardinia, he will be more determined than ever to return from this year's visit to the Troodos Mountains with a top result under his belt. Markko Märtin is another driver who prefers fast, flowing corners to rough, twisty going. However, his 2nd place in Limassol in 2004 showed that he too has the ability to adapt to all types of terrain. The patience and consistency that have been his strong points since the beginning of the season promise once again to be valuable assets in the three events to come.

Marcus Gronhölm / Timo Rautiainen: Apologies, not available.

Markko Martin/Michael Park: Apologies, not available.

Mitsubishi

Harri Rovanperä and Risto Pietiläinen will once again be leading the team assault on this rough and demanding event, while Gilles and Hervé Panizzi return to competitive action for the first time since Rally México in early March. "Gigi" Galli and Guido D’Amore will also be on the island with the team, gaining important knowledge by undertaking the recce. Harri Rovanperä and Risto Pietiläinen have contested the event on four occasions and the pair has a good finishing record. They did not compete when the event first appeared in the FIA World Rally Championship calendar in 2000 and were forced out with broken suspension the following year, but in 2002 they narrowly missed out on a podium position, finishing fourth. In 2003 however, they mounted the podium in second, demonstrating their ability to conquer the conditions. Team-mates Gilles and Hervé Panizzi have fared less well in Cyprus, three retirements from four outings underlining the grueling nature of this event. The French rallying brothers are however looking forward to getting back behind the wheel of the Mitsubishi Lancer WRC05.

Harri Rovanpera/Risto Pietiläinen: "Cyprus has very twisty mountain roads and it’s a very rough, bumpy and difficult rally", commented Harri. "For sure we can see that our current set-up for rough events is working well, having set some good times in Sardinia, and I am quite confident the small changes we will make for Cyprus will work well; we had a long test a few weeks ago and our work focused on this event. We know the car is strong and hopefully we can perform in the same way as Sardinia. It’s not one of my favorite events; it’s so hot, twisty and rough - a Mitsubishi Pajero is more suited to this event than a rally car!"

Gilles Panizzi/Hervé Panizzi: "For sure this is maybe not my best event for results, as we have had many punctures and engine problems in previous years", said Gilles "I cannot say it is one of my favorites, because it is really rough and hard on the car, tires and driver. But the team seems to be making good progress at the moment, especially after seeing the performance in Sardinia. Our last test was also good so I am happy about the job at the moment. Since the team got back from Italy I have spent a few days in Rugby, learning some things around the car and about how to change certain components; this work could prove very important ahead of an event like Cyprus where nearly everyone experiences problems".

Skoda

The Škoda Motorsport World Rally Team travels a short distance to holiday island at the eastern end of the Mediterranean for the sixth round of the World Rally Championship. The Cyprus Rally (May 12-15) will see the Fabia WRC 05 driven by Armin Schwarz/Klaus Wicha and Janne Tuohino/Mikko Markkula. The recent Sardinia event showed that the Fabia WRC 05 is well suited to the kind of rough and rocky roads that it will face in Cyprus. The weather could play a significant part in the eventual result of the rally as, while Cyprus typically enjoys very hot and sunny conditions for the rally, few competitors will forget the treacherous roads they faced when the 2002 event was run amid heavy rainstorms. The Škoda Motorsport World Rally Team missed last year’s rally and so this will be the debut on the island for the Fabia WRC where its predecessor, the Octavia WRC, made its final appearance in 2003.

Janne Tuohino/Mikko Markkula: "Like Sardinia this is a technical event where you have to be a little bit smart and clever. If you try to go flat out you will have problems."

Armin Schwarz/Klaus Wicha: "Cyprus is famous for its tight and twisty stages that are renowned for being tough on both car and driver. It’s always a difficult rally but it is a lovely place to be if it’s sunny although the weather in the mountains can sometimes be very different from what it is on the coast."

Event Statistics

- The Cyprus Rally was called in to replace the Rally of China in the 2000 WRC calendar. The 34th running of the event is therefore the 6th as a WRC qualifier.

- Cyprus has been on local summer time (GMT+3) since March 27th. It is therefore necessary to subtract one hour from the times listed below to obtain continental European time (GMT+2). 

- The Cyprus Rally is based in Lemesos (Limassol), the island's main port and second biggest town. Its stages twist across the slopes of the Troodos Mountains.

- The total length of the 2005 event is 1,063.92 km, including 326.68 km divided into 18 stages (9 different).

- This year's format of two loops of three stages each day is identical to that of 2004 and the same stages figure on the programme in the same order.

- Recce is scheduled for Tuesday May 10th (14:30 until 19:00) and Wednesday May 11th (07:00 until 16:00).

- The shakedown stage is near Palodeia, 6 km from the event's single service park.

- The new service park is located by the brand new sports complex in the northern outskirts of Lemesos where the Rally HQ and press office will also be based.

- The start ceremony (Thursday May 12th, 20:30) and finish ceremony (Sunday May 15th, 15:17) will, as in previous years, take place on the seafront in Lemesos.

- Tyres: two types of pattern are authorised. On May 4th, the teams communicated the 65 barcode references corresponding to their drivers' individual choices. In the course of the rally, drivers may use 40 tyres from their quota.

- Leg 1 (Friday May 13th, Lemesos-Lemesos): 373.44 km, including 121.78 km divided into two loops of three stages. Rally starts from the Lemesos service park at 08:30. SS1 (Lagoudera-Spilia, 38.32 km), SS2 (Kourdali-Asinou, 15 km), SS3 (Asinou-Agios Theodoros, 7.57 km). Regroup, Lemesos (12:39, 20 minutes). Service A (12:59, 30 minutes). SS4 (Lagoudera-Spilia 2), SS5 (Kourdali-Asinou 2), SS6 (Asinou-Agios Theodoros 2). Service B (flexi-service, 17:38, 45 minutes). Cars enter parc ferme in Lemesos before 21:00.

- Leg 2 (Saturday May 14th, Lemesos-Lemesos): 371.22 km, including 109.56 km divided into two loops of three stages. Start from Lemesos at 07:45.Service C (07:45, 10 minutes). SS7 (Platres-Saittas, 11.12 km), SS8 (Foini-Koilina, 30.33 km), SS9 (Galatareia-Pentalia, 13.33 km). Regroup, Lemesos (12:09, 20 minutes). Service D (12:29, 30 minutes). SS10 (Platres-Saittas 2), SS11 (Foini-Koilina 2), SS12 (Galatareia-Pentalia 2). Service E (flexi-service, 17:13, 45 minutes). Cars enter parc ferme in Lemesos before 20:15.

- Leg 3 (Sunday May 15th, Lemesos-Lemesos): 319.26 km, including 95.34 km divided into two loops of three stages. Starts from Lemesos at 06:00. Service F (06:00, 10 minutes). SS13 (Vavatsinia-Mandra Kambiou, 25.24 km), SS14 (Machairas-Agio Vavatsinias, 12.94 km), SS15 (Kellaki-Foinikaria, 9.49 km). Regroup, Lemesos (09:54, 20 minutes). Service G (10:14, 30 minutes). SS16 (Vavatsinia-Mandra Kambiou 2), SS17 (Machairas-Agio Vavatsinias 2), SS18 (Kellaki-Foinikaria 2). Service H (14:31, 20 minutes). Rally finish in Lemesos from 15:17.

Event Timetable

Thursday 12 May: Ceremonial Start

Start     Limassol Promenade                        20.30

Friday 13 May: Leg 1 Limassol - Limassol

Start     Limassol                                  08.30
SS1       Lagoudera - Spilia             38.32km    09.38
SS2       Kourdali - Asinou              15.00km    10.46
SS3       Asinou - Agios Theodoros        7.57km    11.24
Serv A    Limassol (30 mins)                        12.59
SS4       Lagoudera - Spilia             38.32km    14.37
SS5       Kourdali - Asinou              15.00km    15.45
SS6       Asinou - Agios Theodoros        7.57km    16.23
Serv B    Limassol (flexi 45 mins)                  17.38
Finish    Limassol                                  18.23

Total                                    121.78km

Saturday 14 May: Leg 2 Limassol - Limassol

Serv C    Limassol (10 mins)                        07.45
SS7       Platres - Saittas              11.12km    08.48
SS8       Foini - Koilinia               30.33km    09.31
SS9       Galatareia - Pentalia          13.33km    10.29
Serv D    Limassol (30 mins)                        12.29
SS10      Platres - Saittas              11.12km    13.52
SS11      Foini - Koilinia               30.33km    14.35
SS12      Galatareia - Pentalia          13.33km    15.33
Serv E    Limassol (flexi 45 mins)                  17.13
Finish    Limassol                                  17.58

Total                                    109.56km

Sunday 15 May: Leg 3 Limassol - Limassol

Serv F    Limassol (10 mins)                        06.00
SS13      Vavatsinia - Mandra Kambiou    25.24km    07.18
SS14      Machairas - Agioi Vavatsinias  12.94km    08.16              
SS15      Kellaki - Foinikaria            9.49km    09.04
Serv G    Limassol (30 mins)                        10.14
SS16      Vavatsinia - Mandra Kambiou    25.24km    11.52
SS17      Machairas - Agioi Vavatsinias  12.94km    12.50              
SS18      Kellaki - Foinikaria            9.49km    13.38
Serv H    Limassol (20 mins)                        14.31
Finish    Limassol Promenade                        15.17

Total                                    95.34km
Rally Total                              326.68km

Positions after Leg One:

1 LOEB/ELENA             CITROEN TOTAL                       2:01:10.8
2 STOHL/MINOR            Citroën Xsara WRC                    +02:04.2
3 SOLBERG/MENKERUD       BP FORD WORLD RALLY TEAM             +03:01.8
4 MARTIN/PARK            MARLBORO PEUGEOT TOTAL               +03:16.8
5 WARMBOLD/ORR           BP FORD WORLD RALLY TEAM             +03:44.3
6 DUVAL/PREVOT           CITROEN TOTAL                        +04:47.7
7 ROVANPERA/PIETILAINEN  MITSUBISHI MOTORS MOTOR SPORTS       +05:04.7
8 GARDEMEISTER/HONKANEN  BP FORD WORLD RALLY TEAM             +05:26.7
9 TUOHINO/MARKKULA       SKODA MOTORSPORT                     +05:47.6
10 KRESTA/MOZNY           BP FORD WORLD RALLY TEAM             +05:56.8
11 CARLSSON/ANDERSSON     206 WRC                              +10:23.1


News from Leg One

This was forecast to be a rally of high attrition and today lived up to that  prediction.  Four leading entries were sidelined and many more hit trouble.

Sebastien Loeb (Citroen) survived the carnage to build a lead of 2min 04.2sec.  He lost time on the opening stage when his car stalled several times while using the handbrake at hairpin bends.  He was then fastest on the remaining five tests.  A surprise second was private entrant Manfred Stohl, who avoided problems all day.  Markko Märtin (Peugeot) lost 90sec on the first stage with a puncture but recovered to fourth.  François Duval (Citroen) completed the top six, losing third place when he dropped 90sec on the third stage and incurred a 70sec penalty with a throttle problem. Petter Solberg (Subaru) held second until turbo trouble cost 90sec on stage five and a problem with the electronics forced him out just a few metres after the start of the last test.  Team-mate Chris Atkinson retired with a
broken clutch on the liaison section after stage two.  Marcus Grönholm (Peugeot) fared worse, stopping on the first stage with a broken cam belt in the engine and it is unlikely he will rejoin tomorrow under the SupeRally rules.  Armin Schwarz (Skoda) retired on the liaison section to service after stage three when a broken alternator belt meant his car had no charge. Harri Rovanperä (Mitsubishi) survived gearshift problems this morning and transmission trouble this afternoon to hold seventh, while engine and transmission problems slowed team-mate Gilles Panizzi  this morning and he is 22nd.

Citroen

Sébastien Loeb, Daniel Elena and their Xsara WRC came through the awesome opening leg of Rally Cyprus today unscathed to top a somewhat uncustomary leaderboard. The privately-entered Xsara of Manfred Stohl and Ilka Minor follows in 2nd place, while François Duval and Stéphane Prévot have fought their way back to 6th.

Sébastien Loeb / Daniel Elena: "We always knew Cyprus was going to be tough.
But not this tough! The stages are just as we left them last year. Today's long test [SS1 and 4, Lagoudera/Spilia, more than 38 km] was the worst of all. Incredible! Even driving at a snail's pace it was an absolute bone-shaker. There's no gravel left. We're driving directly over rocks."

Francois Duval / Stephane Prevot:  I incurred a 70-second time penalty and then dropped close to 2 minutes in the stage itself. After that, a rear suspension joint came loose during the second loop of stages and I had to ease off. But given all that's happened today, there's still everything to play for!"

Subaru

Rally Cyprus was always going to be a tough challenge, but today's first Leg proved especially frustrating for the Subaru team.

Faced with sweltering temperatures and some of the worst road conditions seen on a WRC event since the Safari Rally of Kenya, Petter Solberg and Chris Atkinson, together with the majority of the other WRC competitors, were hampered by a variety of technical problems.

Solberg started well, with a fastest time in his Subaru Impreza WRC2005 on SS1, but his Leg one challenge came to an end with an electrical fault on the final stage. A damaged clutch on Atkinson's Impreza after stage two meant he too was sidelined from Leg one. After repairs in the Limassol service area tonight, both drivers are hoping to re-join the fearsome event tomorrow.

Petter Solberg / Phil Mills: "It's very disappointing. Today has been so difficult I can't really believe it. The conditions were terrible; it was an effort just to complete the stages, as they were so rough. We had worked hard to prepare for this rally, but we weren't expecting any of the problems that we have encountered today. It's a very unusual rally and a very unusual situation. We'll wait and see how the car is, but of course I hope to start again tomorrow. That's the plan and I really believe that after what we've seen today it's possible for me to finish on the podium. I've often said anything is possible and tonight I believe that more than ever."

Chris Atkinson/Glen Macneall: "We started this rally at a comfortable pace because we knew the roads would be rough and cut up quickly. Perhaps through the first stage we were almost too safe, but we quickly gathered the pace and my confidence increased. But before we could make any real impact the clutch started to slip and that was the end of our day. It's certainly a shame to finish another Leg like this, as personally I wanted to get the car all the way to the finish. But, looking at my development programme, the opportunity to get more experience is the far bigger priority and I have to be grateful that the rules allow me to do that."

Ford

Ford Focus RS World Rally Cars held four of the top 10 positions after a destructive opening leg of the Cyprus Rally today.  Car breaking conditions on the Mediterranean island's twisty gravel tracks either sidelined or delayed one top driver after another.  But the four Focus RS cars were models of reliability in the gruelling speed tests, and none suffered serious mechanical problems on roads regarded as the roughest faced by the FIA World Rally Championship contenders in recent years.Norway's Henning Solberg and Cato Menkerud led the Focus RS challenge in third with fellow private entrants Antony Warmbold and Michael Orr in fifth.  BP-Ford World Rally Team drivers Toni Gardemeister and Jakke Honkanen are eighth in their Castrol-branded Focus RS after a puncture deprived them of a potential second.  Team-mates Roman Kresta and Jan Mozný are 10th after also losing time with punctures.

Toni Gardemeister/Jakke Honkanen: "The overheating caused the anti-lag system to stop working.  The engine went into 'safe' mode to control the temperature and took away throttle response.  It wasn't a big problem.  On the first test I had a difficulty with the brakes, which is quite funny now.

The brake fluid bottle came loose and fell on the floor, jamming under the brake pedal.  I couldn't press the pedal all the way down and I couldn't move the bottle either!"

Roman Kresta/Jan Mozny: "It's been an incredible afternoon, very, very difficult. The time loss means we have a bad start position tomorrow but I'm still in the rally and that's the important thing.  After the punctures this afternoon, my only aim was to get the car back to service.  It was tough but we did it and now the team can replace the suspension so that the car is perfect again tomorrow."

Peugeot

Peugeot Sport suffered a shock to the system on the very first stage of the Rally Cyprus: Marcus Gronholm's 307 WRC retired with a broken timing belt while the sister car of Markko Martin was delayed by a puncture half way through the longest stage of the rally. But very few crews escaped problems on an opening day of high temperatures and rough surfaces that pushed cars and tyres to the limit. Markko Martin ends the day within striking distance of the podium in fourth position, after climbing back up the leaderboard with a consistent and trouble-free drive.

Marcus Gronhölm / Timo Rautiainen: "There was nothing I could do. The engine gradually lost power and the water temperature rose steadily for about six or seven kilometres before it died altogether. Before I saw from our screen that we were fastest on the split times, without pushing especially hard. The car and tyres work well in conditions which are quite awful: the first part of the stage reminded me of the Safari in Kenya! I'm obviously very disappointed - I would have liked to have scored some precious points here."

Markko Martin/Michael Park: "Actually today has not been such a surprise to me. As soon as I saw the conditions of the stages in the recce I knew it would be like this. I lost time on the first stage but I thought that if I stayed out of trouble I would get it back. During the afternoon I had no problems at all so I was able to get back up to fourth. I can't say that I have really enjoyed today, as everything here is a bit of a lottery. But if I continue to steer clear of problems then everything is possible. It's that sort of rally."

Mitsubishi

After a day of carnage, and one that was based on surviving the conditions, the Mitsubishi Motors Motor Sports WRC crew of Harri Rovanperä and Risto Pietiläinen hold 7th position in the Cyprus Rally. Lancer WRC05 team-mates Gilles and Hervé Panizzi had a troubled morning, losing time with engine and transmission problems, and the pair has plummeted down the leaderboard.

Harri Rovanpera/Risto Pietiläinen: ""It was a rear diff problem this afternoon, which gave the same feeling like a slipping clutch. The engine was also intermittently cutting out in the last two stages this afternoon, just when we were in third and fourth gears, so I had to complete both of these stages with just first and second. The conditions really are as bad as I have ever seen them here, but maybe it will be a little bit easier tomorrow."

Gilles Panizzi/Hervé Panizzi: "This morning was difficult with the engine and transmission problems, but at least we are still here. This afternoon our first puncture in stage four was just after the start so it has been impossible to push this afternoon. We also need to do some work with the suspension; we have to understand more what is happening."

Skoda

Skoda Motorsport World Rally Team driver Janne Tuohino holds ninth place this evening but Armin Schwarz did not escape the problems although it was the failure of the alternator belt on the Fabia WRC 05 on the road section after SS3 that ended his participation in today's leg. He should return tomorrow in 16th place under the SupeRally system as one of four factory drivers sidelined today.

Janne Tuohino/Mikko Markkula: "Today has possibly been the most difficult day's rallying I have ever done! The important thing was that I escaped most of the problems that everyone else had so it's not been a bad day after all.

Tomorrow's stages are better but my plan is still to try and stay out of trouble."

Armin Schwarz/Klaus Wicha: "The car was working the same as in Sardinia and I had a good feeling with the way it was handling on these roads. Unfortunately the alternator belt came off on the road section after SS3 and without it the battery could not last very long. We tried to reach service but had to stop with about 20kms to go. We can continue tomorrow and, having seen the way things happen on this rally, who knows what the final result might be?"

Positions after Leg Two:

1 LOEB/ELENA             CITROEN TOTAL                       3:35:33.9
2 STOHL/MINOR            Citroën Xsara WRC                    +03:14.0
3 SOLBERG/MENKERUD       BP FORD WORLD RALLY TEAM             +04:15.4
4 MARTIN/PARK            MARLBORO PEUGEOT TOTAL               +04:34.9
5 GARDEMEISTER/HONKANEN  BP FORD WORLD RALLY TEAM             +07:11.8
6 KRESTA/MOZNY           BP FORD WORLD RALLY TEAM             +08:27.3
7 ROVANPERA/PIETILAINEN  MITSUBISHI MOTORS MOTOR SPORTS       +11:11.6
8 TUOHINO/MARKKULA       SKODA MOTORSPORT                     +13:15.3
9 CARLSSON/ANDERSSON     206 WRC                              +14:06.2
10 WARMBOLD/ORR           BP FORD WORLD RALLY TEAM             +15:06.9
11 ATKINSON/McNEAL        SUBARU WORLD RALLY TEAM              +25:34.2
12 PANIZZI/PANIZZI        MITSUBISHI MOTORS MOTOR SPORTS       +29:23.1
13 SCHWARZ/WICHA          SKODA MOTORSPORT                     +30:39.0

News from Leg Two

With such a large opening day advantage, Sebastien Loeb (Citroen) was never under pressure.  But the Frenchman was fastest on all four stages that he drove competitively and now leads by 3min 32.7sec.  Private entrant Manfred Stohl continued to hold off his pursuers in second and lies 42.7sec clear of Henning Solberg.  Markko Märtin (Peugeot) was untroubled as he climbed to fourth.  Behind the Ford duo, Harri Rovanperä (Mitsubishi) was on course to end the day in sixth but broken front right suspension sidelined him on the final stage.  He incurred a five minute penalty for not finishing the test and dropped one position but will re-start tomorrow.  Marcus Grönholm (Peugeot) was pushed out of parc ferme this morning in the hope that he could restart under SupeRally regulations following yesterday's first stage retirement, but his engine was too badly damaged to continue.  Petter Solberg (Subaru), who retired on the final stage yesterday, was withdrawn late last night due to concerns about the condition of his car's engine, which ran for many kilometres with its air filter clogged by sand and gravel.  François Duval (Citroen) kept a firm grip on sixth until the Belgian crashed into a tree on the penultimate stage.  His car caught fire and the stage was neutralised for the following competitors.  Armin Schwarz (Skoda) retired for the second day when he hit a rock which pitched his car off the track.

Citroen

At the end of the second day of the 2005 Cyprus Rally, Citroën's Sébastien Loeb/Daniel Elena and Manfred Stohl/Ilka Minor continue to figure in the top two places. After taking everyone by surprise by finishing Leg 1 in 2nd position, the Austrian crew put in another faultless run today and still follows in the wake of the defending World Champions who controlled today's proceedings with their customary maturity. However, François Duval and Stéphane Prévot were eliminated when their car caught fire after going off  on SS11.

Sébastien Loeb / Daniel Elena: "I am pleased, of course. We didn't have any problems with the car and I didn't make any mistakes. Those two points were essential today and will be again tomorrow. I can't remember having previously led a WRC rally by such a big margin and it's a weird feeling. I tell myself that I am my own biggest rival. I must stay concentrated to avoid the sort of troubles that have decimated the field, especially since today's stages were in a better condition than yesterday's. Tomorrow's are rougher. When it's like that, when you haven't got a fight on your hands, you suffer at the same time as your car and it's difficult to derive any real pleasure."

Francois Duval / Stephane Prevot: "The braking zone for the right-hand turn was bumpy. Bumpier than first time through. I braked a little too late, missed the apex and under-steered off the road down a two-metre bank. The front of the car hit a tree and the impact damaged the fuel injection system. A small fire broke out but that was swiftly put out by the onboard extinguishers. I didn't succeed in opening the bonnet but I estimated that the damage wasn't too bad and tried to re-start. However, fire broke out again and the flames spread to the dry undergrowth around the car. There was nothing we could do."

Subaru

After re-starting this morning, Chris Atkinson moved seven places up the leaderboard to end the day in 13th position overall. Setting a string of top-ten times aboard his Subaru Impreza WRC2005, the WRC newcomer experimented with his car's set-up and fulfilled his objective of gaining experience of both his car and the specialist event. Concern about the condition of his Subaru's engine meant that Petter Solberg did not restart the Leg.

Petter Solberg / Phil Mills: Retired

Chris Atkinson/Glen Macneall: "We've seen some pretty rough conditions out there again today, especially on the second pass through the stages, but we've managed to keep out of trouble and have had a productive day. I'm in the fortunate position of being able to experiment with different driving styles and car settings to get the best performance in these conditions. I'm looking forward to doing more of the same on tomorrow's final."

Ford

Ford holds three of the top six places on the Cyprus Rally tonight after a second highly destructive day's competition on the Mediterranean island. The rough and rugged gravel tracks again took a heavy toll, but the Ford Focus RS World Rally Car matched speed with reliability to maintain a strong presence at the top of the leaderboard on this sixth round of the FIA World Rally Championship.

Norwegians Henning Solberg and Cato Menkerud maintained a consistently fast pace in their privately-entered Focus RS to retain third place. BP-Ford World Rally Team drivers Toni Gardemeister and Jakke Honkanen climbed to fifth in their Castrol-branded car while team-mates Roman Kresta and Jan Mozný ended the leg sixth in a similar Focus RS.

Toni Gardemeister/Jakke Honkanen:  "I must have hit something but I don't know what. The mousse came out of the tyre and I had to continue to the finish like that. I've been happy with the car. I tried to drive smoothly and straight to avoid the stones but this is not what rallying is about for me. I'm not pushing too hard because if I try to drive flat out on these rocky roads then there is a chance that something will break. It's the same for everyone. I will try to continue at the same speed tomorrow."

Roman Kresta/Jan Mozny: "The roads were less rough today and the afternoon pass through the stages was easier than the first run this morning. There was quite a lot of loose gravel on the surface this morning but I prefer that to what we had yesterday. On the last stage we had a couple of close escapes with big rocks that were lying right in the middle of the track."

Peugeot

After examining the engine of Marcus Gronholm's 307 WRC at first service this morning, it was decided that the Finn would not re-start. The valves of the engine were too badly damaged following the timing belt breakage that sidelined him on day one. Following the first loop of three stages today, Markko Martin closed to within 1.7 seconds of the podium. A sprinkling of rain gave tyre choice an extra twist at the midday service halt. Peugeot Sport gambled on the stages remaining dry, which proved to be the correct decision. But the second loop still sprang plenty of surprises, such as Francois Duval's roll from which the crew escaped uninjured before their Citroen caught fire. The stage was stopped and notional times given to Manfred Stohl and Sebastien Loeb on the final two stages. As well as Duval, Harri Rovanpera, Antony Warmbold and Armin Schwarz also retired, while Toni Gardemeister was held back by mechanical problems.

Marcus Gronhölm / Timo Rautiainen: Retired

Markko Martin/Michael Park: "It's not been a bad day, and I've had no real problems. I've just concentrated on keeping the car on the road and avoiding all the dramas that seem to have affected everybody else. I am currently second of the manufacturer entries, and with no chance of taking the lead there is no point in pushing. This rally has been a real trial, and I'm just looking forward to getting to the finish tomorrow."

Mitsubishi

After a promising day of competition, in which the Mitsubishi Motors Motor Sports crew of Harri Rovanperä/Risto Pietiläinen held sixth position, the Lancer WRC05 duo were ultimately forced to retire in the final stage with suspension damage. They nevertheless hold seventh in the overall classification after amassing penalties for not completing the stage. Team-mates Gilles and Hervé Panizzi hold 15th after losing significant time yesterday.

Harri Rovanpera/Risto Pietiläinen: "We hit a rock that then came into the wheel housing and lodged into the damper, which obviously then got blocked. The suspension arm broke and although we tried to continue it was better to stop, not cause any more damage and be able to re-start tomorrow."

Gilles Panizzi/Hervé Panizzi: "The car is still not to my liking and I am having to fight with it too much. The second loop of stages this afternoon was maybe 50 per cent better than yesterday; some of which was as rough as Kenya! But, we are still here, starting tomorrow and that is a good thing."

Skoda

Skoda Motorsport World Rally Team driver Janne Tuohino holds a points-scoring eighth place after the second day of the gruelling Cyprus Rally but Armin Schwarz will again restart the final leg under the SupeRally system. Once again the day was typified by problems hitting crews throughout the field. After setting ninth fastest time on the opening stage, Janne was then slowed on the next when a pipe to the turbo was shaken loose by the battering from the rough roads. Armin had settled into a safe pace to stay clear of the dramas that hit other crews but left the road on SS11. He will restart tomorrow in 17th place overall.

Janne Tuohino/Mikko Markkula: "We started well and today's roads were a bit smoother than yesterday's although that still means they are very rough. About 5kms into the second stage we lost power and at the end we found that the turbo pipe had been shaken off. It only took a few minutes to fix it and although we lost a lot of time it only cost us one place and we've since made that up this afternoon."

Armin Schwarz/Klaus Wicha: "Today was all about trying to drive with caution, almost at cruise speed, to stay out of trouble. Unfortunately we ran over a big rock about 6kms into SS11 which kicked the car into the air from the impact with the sump guard. It was just before a corner and so we went off the road and couldn't get back on. The car isn't damaged and we should be back out again tomorrow."

Final Positions:

1 LOEB/ELENA             CITROEN TOTAL                       5:02:29.4
2 STOHL/MINOR            Citroën Xsara WRC                    +04:09.5
3 MARTIN/PARK            MARLBORO PEUGEOT TOTAL               +04:41.9
4 SOLBERG/MENKERUD       BP FORD WORLD RALLY TEAM             +05:15.7
5 GARDEMEISTER/HONKANEN  BP FORD WORLD RALLY TEAM             +07:37.3
6 KRESTA/MOZNY           BP FORD WORLD RALLY TEAM             +10:17.4
7 ROVANPERA/PIETILAINEN  MITSUBISHI MOTORS MOTOR SPORTS       +12:18.7
8 CARLSSON/ANDERSSON     206 WRC                              +16:03.2
9 TUOHINO/MARKKULA       SKODA MOTORSPORT                     +16:46.3
10 ATKINSON/McNEAL        SUBARU WORLD RALLY TEAM              +27:01.5

Final Leg News

Sebastien Loeb (Citroen) extended his world championship lead with his third consecutive victory.  He finished with a lead of 4min 09.5sec having posted 12 fastest times from the 16 stages run competitively.  Private entrant Manfred Stohl was a surprise second, ahead of the consistent Markko Märtin (Peugeot).  Behind the Ford trio of Henning Solberg, Toni Gardemeister and Roman Kresta, Harri Rovanperä (Mitsubishi) took seventh, despite his steering wheel working loose in the opening stage, while privateer Daniel Carlsson took the final drivers' points after overhauling Janne Tuohino's (Skoda) overheating car on the penultimate stage.  Ninth, 10th and 11th were sufficient for Tuohino, Chris Atkinson (Subaru) and Gilles Panizzi (Mitsubishi) to claim the final manufacturers' points.

Citroen

Sébastien Loeb, Daniel Elena and their trusty Citroën collected their third consecutive win today in Cyprus, their fourth of the 2005 season. This weekend's success - the crew's fourteenth at WRC level - takes the defending champions 11 points clear at the top of the provisional Drivers' World Championship standings.

Sébastien Loeb / Daniel Elena: "This is the moment we've been waiting for, for the past two days. Ever since the real battle ended in fact. It's a bit of a strange win and I feel a certain relief that it's over. The car was perfect and didn't give us any problems, and we didn't make any mistakes. This win may not have been all that exciting but, like all the others, it's worth ten valuable points!"

Francois Duval / Stephane Prevot: Retired (accident & fire)

Subaru

After a trouble-free run on today's final Leg of the Cyprus Rally, Subaru's Chris Atkinson moved three places up the leaderboard to achieve a top-ten finish. Contesting the event for the first time, Atkinson's primary objective for the rally was to gain experience of the car in the specialist conditions. On today's final six stages, the Australian was also able to experiment with the set-up of his Impreza WRC2005 in preparation for the forthcoming rough gravel events in Turkey and Greece.

Petter Solberg / Phil Mills: Retired

Chris Atkinson/Glen Macneall: "The event didn't get off to the best start for us, but in fact, once the competitive pressure lifted, we had a great opportunity to experiment with the car and learn more about the conditions.

We ran at a consistent and safe pace and I think we've made some useful steps ahead of Greece and Turkey. We've still got some more work to do of course, especially in the slow corners, but I'm pleased with what we've achieved here this weekend."

Ford

Ford created history on the Cyprus Rally today by claiming its 50th consecutive points finish in the FIA World Rally Championship.  Three Focus RS World Rally Cars finished in the top six places of the season's toughest rally to ensure Ford reached its half century.  Since the championship was officially launched in 1973, there have been 411 world rallies and no other manufacturer has composed a run of consecutive points scores that exceeds 36.

Toni Gardemeister/Jakke Honkanen: "The times might not suggest it, but I drove quite slowly today. It's hard to find a good rhythm when the pace is not 100 per cent and you're driving at a speed so that you don't make a mistake.  We weren't on full attack but couldn't drop our speed too much. But generally we've had a good pace and it's a pity we lost time with two punctures earlier in the event.

Roman Kresta/Jan Mozny: "This is the hardest rally I've ever driven, apart from the Safari Rally in Kenya which is unlike any other event. It's been tough for co-drivers and drivers.  It was hot in the car and the stages were long and difficult.  I'm pleased that I was well prepared and fit.  I'm not sure how I would have coped if I wasn't fit.  We scored good points and this is a great achievement for everyone in Ford."

Peugeot

By finishing third on the Cyprus Rally, Markko Martin has brought Peugeot eight precious points for the manufacturers championship and added six points to his own personal tally. This has allowed the Estonian to climb to second place in the drivers championship, a position he holds jointly with Subaru's Petter Solberg.

Marcus Gronhölm / Timo Rautiainen: Retired

Markko Martin/Michael Park: "I knew that if I wanted to be on the podium I had to push hard today. It was quite difficult, because I did not want to take any risks with the manufacturer points I already had in the bag for Peugeot. Luckily we were able to do it, after what has been a very difficult rally for us. We lost a lot of time on the first day, but I knew that if we stayed out of trouble we would be able to get a good result. The car has been perfect, and with every rally I feel a bit more comfortable with it."

Mitsubishi

At the end of what is likely to be the toughest round of the FIA World Rally Championship, the Mitsubishi Motors Motor Sports WRC team claimed manufacturer points with both its Lancer WRC05 cars, one of only two of the six registered teams to do so. Harri Rovanperä/Risto Pietiläinen finished seventh overall and while team-mates Gilles and Hervé Panizzi finished 11th, they claimed the final manufacturer point in the Cyprus Rally.

Harri Rovanpera/Risto Pietiläinen: "We weren't cruising today, but the gaps in front and behind were big enough that there was no sense in pushing hard and risking the car. These were some of the worst roads I have seen in years, maybe only matched by the Acropolis many years ago. We have a test coming up next week where we can focus on issues from this event and hopefully make some more improvements to help us in Turkey and Greece. Overall I'm pleased; I think without problems we could have been fighting with Manfred (Stohl) and had a very good result."

Gilles Panizzi/Hervé Panizzi: ""It was a difficult weekend and it's nice to finish and get a point for Mitsubishi. It has been the worst event of the season, in terms of the roughness of the roads, and for various reasons it was simply a matter of getting through the stages."

Skoda

Janne Tuohino brought the Skoda Fabia WRC 05 to the finish of the Cyprus Rally in ninth position, narrowly missing out on his first drivers' championship points of the season. However his result brought three points for the Skoda Motorsport World Rally Team after the most gruelling event so far this season. Janne lost a place yesterday when a pipe to the turbo was shaken loose on the rough roads during the second leg and had to sacrifice eighth place today when the water temperature soared in the closing stages.

Janne Tuohino/Mikko Markkula: "This morning we made some adjustments to the differential mapping so that I could drive safely and try to reach the finish in the points positions for both the drivers and manufacturers. I didn't try to push any harder than was necessary to keep Daniel Carlsson behind me but on SS17 the water temperature rose to 130 degrees and we had to switch to safe mode to finish the rally."

Armin Schwarz/Klaus Wicha: "This morning I was taking no risks and trying some different differential settings that will be a useful starting point in our test next week and for the next two events. What surprised me most today was the size of the rocks in the road, even for the first car."