Rally Preview

After two European events the FIA World Rally Championship makes its way to the other side of the globe for the finale of the 2005 season. Rally Australia concludes the championship with three days of flat-out action on the red earth roads around Perth, the capital of Western Australia, from 10-13 November.

With this year's drivers' title already wrapped up, the battle now focuses on second and third positions. Subaru's Petter Solberg will go head-to-head with Peugeot's Marcus Gronholm and with the duo currently level on 71 points after 15 of the 16 events the battle looks set to go right down to the wire.

After two sealed-surface rallies the series returns to gravel with most of the rally taking place on forest roads to the south and east of Perth. The distinctive red roads are a challenge to crews, since the fast and narrow routes are covered by a fine layer of marble-like gravel that makes them extremely slippery. Grip levels as a result can be very low, although crews further down the starting order will find more adhesion as the 'ball-bearing' surface hides a hard-packed base. The first crews on the road will therefore be at a distinct disadvantage as they sweep the road for the following cars.

Rally organisers recently announced that the Australian event will remain in Perth for the 2006 season, a popular decision with teams and spectators who relish the sunshine and stunning scenery that characterise the event. With plumes of dust trailing the cars, and spectacular jumps and watersplashes like those seen in the Sotico stages on the second day, the event is one of the most photogenic of the year.

This year's rally shows several changes from previous editions, while remaining faithful to the traditional speed tests near Perth.  It is more compact than in previous years and no longer visits the southerly Stirling tests on the opening day.  The service park reverts to the riverside Langley Park, although the Perth super special stages will remain at the Gloucester Park trotting track, where the action begins on Thursday evening.  The opening leg continues south of Perth on Friday with stages clustered around the town of Dwellingup.  Saturday's route takes competitors south-west to the Bunnings stages, where the famous roller coaster jumps and watersplash provide some of the season's most spectacular action.  Both days end with tests east of Perth and a repeat of the city super special stages, which are run six times in all.  The Bunnings tests, usually used on the final leg, have swapped places with the Mundaring stages, east of Perth, which now comprise the final day. Competitors face 355.39km of competition in a total route of 1345.41km.

Citroen

Telstra Rally Australia will mark the end of a remarkable season this weekend (10-13 November 2005) for Citroën and its newly crowned World Champion, Sébastien Loeb and, after securing his second title, Citroën's third world title in succession and set new world records for most wins in a season and largest number of consecutive wins, Loeb and Citroën are determined to end on a high note, not least because it is also the last event for the team itself, with Citroën pulling out of the sport. But with all the prizes already in bag, Citroën out of the sport for 2006 before returning in 2007 and its star driver lined up to drive for another team in 2007, albeit still in a Citroën, does this mean that Telstra Rally Australia is little more than an end of season party for the team? Citroën Total has sent two Xsara WRCs to Perth for its usual crews Sébastien Loeb/Daniel Elena and François Duval/Sven Smeets, while Team Kronos Racing - the team Loeb will join in 2006 - will run the privately-entered Xsaras of Manfred Stohl/Ilka Minor and Xavier Pons/Carlos Del Barrio.

Sébastien Loeb/Daniel Elena: "These past two years, running first on the road has been less of a handicap because of rain prior to the start which helped limit the damage," explains Loeb. "There are a number of different scenarios which can vary from stage to stage. At times, you have to cut a line through the famous top-coating of marbles, at others you come across clear lines left by the cars during recce. But even then, it is difficult to stick to them when you're pushing hard. To help boost morale, it is often said that the drivers running second and third on the road are more or less in the same boat, but sometimes it only takes the line cleared by one car - namely mine - for them to be able to get down to the road's hard-packed base. The split times show that we take a hiding but there is nothing we can do about it. For sure, it's irritating. But the danger is allowing that irritation to lead you into doing something stupid. The first leg in Australia is therefore an object lesson in patience. You just have to drive as well as you can on the Friday and then take stock at the end of the day to see what sort of result is realistic."

Francois Duval/Sven Smeets: "In 2002, I retired after hitting a small tree with my door. In 2003, I was slowed by hydraulic problems I think. Last year, everything went well. In a WRC car, the stages are sometimes very slippery but I have often benefited from a favourable road order. This time, I will be fifth on the road on the Friday I think. It will probably still be a little difficult and very slippery. A good position, in Australia, is at least tenth on the road."

Subaru

The Subaru World Rally Team will enter a two-car team on Rally Australia. The two Impreza WRC2005's will be driven by Petter Solberg (co-driven by Phil Mills) and Chris Atkinson (co-driven by Glenn Macneall). Stéphane Sarrazin will complete the recce to gain experience of the event. Petter has contested the rally five times before and won it in 2003 on the way to clinching that year's drivers' championship. 2005 will be Chris' second entry in Rally Australia. In a remarkable performance last year, at the wheel of production class Impreza WRX, Chris won the Group N classification and finished in fifth place overall.

Petter Solberg/Phil Mills: "The focus this rally is on securing second position in the drivers' championship. We've shown that we can compete with Marcus on a level playing field and I will be 100% determined to get a good result. Australia is a fantastic event and we've had a win here so I am confident that we can achieve our aim. I enjoy the stages, the weather is good, the people are friendly - it's the perfect place to celebrate!"

Chris Atkinson/Glen MacNeall: "I'm really looking forward to this event. It will be fantastic to go home and after my first year in the World Rally Championship it will be interesting to see the support that we have. This will only be my second time on the rally in Perth, so I don't have a massive home advantage - my home's four thousand kilometres away on the east coast! We have had some good results this year, though, and the goal will be to achieve a similar result to Japan. We've shown what we can do when we have experience of the event."

Ford

The all-new Ford Focus RS World Rally Car, the Blue Oval's challenger for the 2006 FIA World Rally Championship, will make its first public appearance on next week's Rally Australia (10 - 13 November). Two cars will be crewed by regular BP-Ford World Rally Team drivers Toni Gardemeister and Jakke Honkanen and team-mates Roman Kresta and Jan Tománek. They will tackle the 16th and final round of the FIA World Rally Championship as a continuation of the car's test and development programme, in preparation for its first competitive outing on the opening round of next year's series, January's Monte Carlo Rally.

Toni Gardemeister/Jakke Honkanen: This will be 30-year-old Gardemeister's sixth Rally Australia start, and he has two sixth-place finishes to his credit. "It's exciting to think about driving the new car for the first time," he said. "It looks fantastic and I'm impressed with it. I've not driven the new Focus RS WRC yet and shakedown will be the first time I get the opportunity to do that. It will be difficult because I don't know how it will behave, but that's the kind of information the team wants to learn. "I like the country and the rally. The roads are fast and similar to my home event in Finland. They are also slippery with trees right by the side of the road so if a driver makes a mistake, it's easy to land in big trouble," added the Finn, who is already assured of fourth place in the final drivers' championship standings.

Roman Kresta/Jan Mozny: Kresta has not started Rally Australia before, but the 29-year-old Czech has some knowledge of the unique stages there. "I was there with a former team in 2002. I didn't do the recce but checked some of the stages to get a feel for the roads. They appear fast and narrow in places, with a lot of trees close to the edge of the road. It will be difficult as a 'first-timer' but I'm used to that this season. My aim is to learn as much about the nature of the roads as possible," he said. "I'm excited about driving the new Focus RS WRC. I went to M-Sport to fix my seat position after the Rally Catalunya and I drove the car slowly around the grounds of Dovenby Hall for about 300 metres. Now I can't wait to drive it at speed on the shakedown. The technology is fantastic but that's what you expect from a new Ford Focus RS WRC," added Kresta, whose entry car is the same vehicle that completed the UK tests.

Peugeot

The French team intends to throw all its strength into this final showdown in a bid to end its WRC adventure as it started it, with a top result. The two 307WRCs will be driven by Marcus Grönholm, three-times winner of the Perth-based event, and by the young Swede Daniel Carlsson. When these two drivers line up for the start of the team's final WRC rally in Australia, it will clearly be a very emotional moment for Peugeot Sport. This fast and highly selective rally is amongst those on which the French squad has enjoyed the most success in recent years, with Marcus Grönholm winning outright three years on the trot in 2000, 2001 and 2002. This time round, the Finn will be looking to take that figure to four wins in order to add a last victory to the team's highly enviable record.  Rally Australia has counted towards the World Rally Championship since 1988 and Peugeot has taken part in the last six years with remarkable success. The 206 WRC competed here for the first time in 1999, while the 307WRC's maiden visit was in 2004.

Marcus Gronhölm/Timo Rautiainen: Apologies. Peugeot have not made quotes available.

Nicolas Bernardi/Jean Marc Fortin: Apologies. Peugeot have not made quotes available.

Skoda

The Škoda Motorsport World Rally Team heads to Australia for the 16th and final round of the 2005 World Rally Championship (November 10-13) where the Fabia WRC 05 will be driven by the regular crew of Armin Schwarz/Klaus Wicha alongside Britain's Colin McRae/Nicky Grist. World Champion of 1995 Colin McRae readily agreed to drive the Fabia for the second time this season after a successful first time at the wheel on September's Rally GB. The Škoda Motorsport World Rally Team for Australia is therefore the most experienced partnership in the entry list with 262 WRC starts and 26 wins between them. Colin won the event twice, in 1994 and 1997, completed the event eighth times and has never finished outside the top six.

Colin McRae/Nicky Grist: "Australia is a very difficult rally. It is high-speed and the trees are very close to the edge of the road. Combine that with the unique road surface and you end up with one of the toughest rallies of the year. It is also one of my favourites because it is well organised, has a great atmosphere and I've had some great results there. My start position should be perfect so I'm looking forward to the event."

Armin Schwarz/Klaus Wicha: "Australia is a great country to visit. Everyone knows how hard the rally is and that is partly because of the surface but also because there is not the same natural rhythm to the stages that you find anywhere else. But it will definitely be a fun place to end the season."

Mitsubishi

After two back-to-back European asphalt events, the FIA World Rally Championship contenders head down under for the final round of the 2005 season. Rally Australia (November 10-13) will see Mitsubishi Motorsport field another two-car entry and Harri Rovanperä/Risto Pietiläinen will once again be joined by "Gigi" Galli/Guido d'Amore for the last gravel challenge of the year. Harri Rovanperä has seven Rally Australia outings under his belt and also some good results. In his first event in 1997 he won the World 2 Liter category and has since had two sixth-placed finishes (1999 and 2001) as well as two second positions (2002 and 2004). Team-mate Gigi Galli has only previously competed in Australia once, in Mitsubishi's Group N machinery.

Harri Rovanpera/Risto Pietilainen: "It's a rally, country and city I like a lot", said Harri. "It's always very nice to go to Perth and I have a lot of good memories. In previous years each leg's stages have had very different characteristics and each is difficult and challenging. Tires are very important for this rally, like everywhere, but I hope the weather will not be too hot and then we can really fight. Pirelli tires always work well here and I'm confident of a good performance, like in Wales and Japan. If we can have a trouble-free time, we will get a good result, I'm sure".

Gigi Galli/Guido d'Amore: Last year we were leading in Group N, until a big meeting with a tree!" said Gigi. "For me that is the biggest characteristic of the event; the closeness of the trees to very fast and narrow roads and for that I don't really like this rally so much. This is my first year driving the world rally car in Australia and it will not be so easy to make the change I think. But, of course I feel confident after our performance on the last gravel rally in Japan, but once again we stick to our goal of gaining experience and learning the roads for the future. I'm confident in the performance of the Pirelli tires as they are competitive on this event and for this I don't have any worries. I think if we are able to find a good balance between performance and consistency, we can have a good result for the team at the end of the year".

Event Timetable

Thursday 10 November: Leg 1 Perth - Perth

Start  Perth                          17.50
SS1    Perth City Super 1      2.35km 18.13
SS2    Perth City Super 2      2.35km 18.22
Finish  Perth                          18.32

Friday 11 November: Leg 1 Perth - Perth (cont)

Serv A  Perth (10 mins)                07.15
SS3    Murray North 1          15.92km 09.23
SS4    Murray South 1          20.12km 09.56
SS5    Turner Hill              5.35km 10.46
SS6    Murray North 2          15.92km 11.57
SS7    Murray South 2          20.12km 12.30
Serv B  Perth (30 mins)                14.50
SS8    Beraking 1              23.03km 16.31
SS9    Flynns 1                19.87km 17.17
SS10    Perth City Super 3      2.35km 19.15
SS11    Perth City Super 4      2.35km 19.24
Serv C  Perth (45 mins)                19.37
Finish  Perth                          20.22

Saturday 12 November: Leg 2 Perth - Perth

Serv D  Perth (10 mins)                07.35
SS12    Bannister North 1      17.71km 09.25
SS13    Bannister Central 1    17.85km 09.57
SS14    Bannister Loop          3.62km 10.41
SS15    Bannister North 2      17.71km 12.03
SS16    Bannister Central 2    17.85km 12.35
Serv E  Perth (30 mins)                14.50
SS17    Beraking 2              23.03km 16.31
SS18    Flynns 2                19.87km 17.17
SS19    Perth City Super 5      2.35km 19.15
SS20    Perth City Super 6      2.35km 19.24
Serv C  Perth (45 mins)                19.37
Finish  Perth                          20.22

Sunday 13 November: Leg 3 Perth - Perth

Serv G  Perth (10 mins)                06.30
SS21    Atkins 1                4.42km 07.33
SS22    Helena North 1          29.93km 08.03
SS23    Helena South 1          17.31km 08.44         
Serv H  Perth (30 mins)                10.10
SS24    Atkins 2                4.42km 11.33
SS25    Helena North 2          29.93km 12.03
SS26    Helena South 2          17.31km 12.44

Event Statistics

- Telstra Rally Australia is based in Perth, the capital of Western Australia.

- Perth is in the GMT+8 time zone. The time difference with Continental Europe (GMT+1) is therefore 7 hours, to be subtracted form the times listed below to obtain Continental European time.

- Total length of the 2005 event is 1,345.41 km, including 355.01 km divided into 26 stages (11 different).

- The engines of the WRC cars are those that were used in Japan.

- Tyres: two different tread patterns are authorised. The maximum quota per driver is 70 tyres, 45 of which may be used during the event. The list of barcode references was registered with the FIA on September 23rd.

- Recce (two passes) is scheduled to take place on Tuesday November 8th (07:30 until 19:00) and Wednesday November 9th (08:00 until 18:30).

- Shakedown (Thursday November 10th, 08:00 until 11:00) uses a 4 km stage in Mundaring (Kennedy Road). Its location some 40km east of Perth means that a specific service park will be set up in Fred Jacoby Park, Mundaring.

- The single service park remains in Perth but has switched to Langley Park on the right bank of the Swan River.

- Of a total length of 554.01 km, including 129.54 km divided into 11 stages, Leg 1 kicks off on Thursday November 10th. The rally starts from the Langley Park service park, Perth, at 17:50. SS1 (Perth City I, 2.35
km) and SS2 (Perth City II). Cars enter parc ferme (Langley Park) from 18:32.

- Leg 1 continues on Friday November 11th. Starts from Perth at 07:15. Service A (07:15, 10 minutes). SS3 (Murray North I, 15.92 km), SS4 (Murray South I, 20.12 km) and SS5 (Turner Hill, 5.35 km). Regroup in Dwellingup (11:26, 20 minutes). SS6 (Murray North II) and SS7 (Murray South II). Regroup in Perth, Langley Park (14:30, 20 minutes). Service B (14:50, 30 minutes). SS8 (Beraking I, 22.84 km) and SS9 (Flynns I, 19.87 km). Regroup in Perth, Gloucester Park (18:47, 15 minutes). SS10 (Perth City III) and SS11 (Perth City IV). Service C (19:37, flexi-service, 45 minutes). Final car scheduled to check into parc ferme at 22:00.

- Leg 2 (Saturday November 12th): 493.14 km, including 122.15 km divided into 9 stages. Starts from Perth at 07:35. Service D (07:35, 10 minutes). SS12 (Bannister North I, 17.71 km), SS13 (Bannister Central I, 17.85 km) and SS14 (Bannister Loop, 3.62 km). Regroup in Wespine (11:11, 40 minutes). SS15 (Bannister North II) and SS16 (Bannister Central II). Regroup in Perth, Langley Park (14:30, 20 minutes). Service E (14:50, 30 minutes). SS17 (Beraking II) and SS18 (Flynns II). Regroup in Perth, Gloucester Park (18:47, 15 minutes). SS19 (Perth City V) and SS20 (Perth City VI). Service F (19:37, flexi-service, 45 minutes). Final car scheduled to check into parc ferme at 22:00.

- Leg 3 (Sunday November 13th): 298.26 km, including 103.32 km divided into 6 stages. Starts at 06:30. Service G (06:30, 10 minutes). SS21 (Atkins I, 4.42 km), SS22 (Helena North I, 29.93 km) and SS23 (Helena South I, 17.31 km). Regroup in Perth, Langley Park (09:50, 20 minutes). Service H (10:10, 30 minutes). SS24 (Atkins II), SS25 (Helena North II) and SS26 (Helena South II). Service I (13:53, 20 minutes). Final regroup (14:13, 32 minutes). Podium ceremony: 14:45.

Standings after Leg One

1.  P Solberg/P Mills          Subaru Impreza    1hr 14min 58.0sec
2.  F Duval/S Smeets          Citroen Xsara    1hr 15min 44.6sec
3.  C McRae/N Grist            Skoda Fabia      1hr 15min 46.0sec
4.  H Rovanperä/R Pietilainen  Mitsubishi Lancer 1hr 16min 01.5sec
5.  M Stohl/I Minor            Citroen Xsara    1hr 16min 11.4sec
6.  G Galli/G D'Amore          Mitsubishi Lancer 1hr 16min 18.2sec
7.  T Gardemeister/J Honkanen  Ford Focus RS    1hr 16min 35.6sec
8.  R Kresta/J Tománek        Ford Focus RS    1hr 16min 44.8sec
9.  D Solà/X Amigo            Ford Focus RS    1hr 16min 58.9sec
10 C Atkinson/G MacNeall      Subaru Impreza    1hr 17min 07.3sec

News after Leg One

A dramatic day accounted for several top drivers.  The biggest was world champion  Sebastien Loeb (Citroen) who had just edged into the lead when he crashed into a tree  near the end of stage nine.  Marcus Grönholm (Peugeot) retired on a liaison section for  the third rally in a row when his front suspension collapsed on stage seven and the  police stopped him as he attempted to return to the Perth service park.  Team-mate  Daniel Carlsson crashed on today's opening stage and his car caught fire and burned out.  Neither Carlsson nor co-driver Mattias Andersson were injured.  Petter Solberg and  Chris Atkinson (both Subaru) each led early this morning but Atkinson dropped more than  2min 30sec after breaking a steering arm.  Solberg moved ahead when Loeb crashed and  leads François Duval (Citroen) by 46.6sec.  Colin McRae (Skoda) drove superbly and made  the most of a cleaner road position to hold third, 15.5sec ahead of Harri Rovanperä  (Mitsubishi).

Temperatures ranged from 10°C to 22°C. The day was mainly sunny with little cloud,  although some early morning stages were damp with dew.

The second leg contains some of the most spectacular tests of the season.  Cars head  south-east of Perth to Bannister Plantation, where the famous roller-coaster Bunnings  jumps and water splash provide superb action for photographers and TV crews.  After five  stages at Bannister, competitors return for a repeat of today's afternoon tests before  two last stages at the Gloucester Park super special.  Drivers leave Perth at 07.35 and  return at 20.22 after 122.34km of competition.

Citroen

Citroen already have the 2005 Manufacturers and Drivers titles wrapped up. But none the less there was dissapointment when Sebastien Loeb positioned second retired after sliding into a tree on the final country stage of leg 1. Francois Duval was placed third going into the night time super special stage, but was able to overhaul Colin Mcrae and holds overnight second.

Sébastien Loeb/Daniel Elena: Retired

Francois Duval/Sven Smeets: Early during the day Duval although happy with his performance was still coming to grips with the Australian surface: ".. Braking sometimes is bad because of the loose surface.". SS6: "Engine stalled at hairpin [turn], but was ok." SS8: "Really difficult, I have changed settings, but will change it back for tomorrow." Final comments: "Happy with the place today"

Subaru



Subaru World Rally Team driver Petter Solberg holds the overnight lead of Rally  Australia tonight after a trouble-free run on the first Leg of the competition. He set  top five times throughout the day and won three stages. With two days of the rally  remaining Solberg lies more than 45secs ahead of second-placed François Duval. In front  of his home crowd Subaru's young gun Chris Atkinson showed his star potential by taking  four stage wins and taking the lead of the event in the morning. Unfortunately Chris's  run of success was interrupted by a damaged steering arm on SS6 but with his car back to  full strength he mounted a spirited recovery on the latter stages and is looking to make  more progress back up the leaderboard over the coming days.

Petter Solberg/Phil Mills: It's been great fun out there today, better than I expected  actually, the car and tyres have been perfect and I'm really enjoying myself. In Japan  we saw how much of a step we'd made on gravel and today it's felt good to be fighting  for the lead again - that's what we're here for. Running second on the road today there  was lots of loose gravel about and it was extremely slippery and easy to make a mistake  and spin. We pushed where we could, but the main objective was to get through cleanly  and get a better road position for tomorrow's Leg. We've done that now and I think we'll  be able to enjoy ourselves over the next couple of days!

Chris Atkinson/Glen MacNeall: We've certainly had some highs and some lows today. Things  started perfectly, the car felt just right and Glenn and I were feeling pretty happy at  the regroup after SS5, but on the next stage all the good work was undone by the damaged  steering arm. It was especially disappointing in front of a home crowd, but there wasn't  anything Glenn or I could do to fix it before service. Since then we've been right back  on the pace and I'm determined to make as much of the next couple of days as I can.  We've seen today that a lot can happen on these roads, they're great fun to drive but  they always seem to bring a few surprises, so who knows what place we can get back to?  We're back up to 100 percent and the car seems to suit the conditions perfectly, we'll  do the best we can.

Ford

The all-new Ford Focus RS World Rally Car made an instant impact during its first public  appearance on Rally Australia today. The early signs were hugely encouraging with  Gardemeister claiming second fastest time at the super special stage at Perth's  Gloucester Park trotting track, which began the action yesterday evening. The  30-year-old Finn added a third fastest time on the slippery gravel roads more than 100km  south of the Western Australia capital of Perth, where this morning's speed tests were  based.  Twice Kresta was fourth fastest and both Focus RS drivers were in the top three  overall on stage times during the morning loop. However, both Kresta and Gardemeister  were last night handed a 30 second time penalty for not starting the event with the same  engine with which they finished the Rally Japan in the 2005- specification Focus RS  (Japan and Australia are paired for engine purposes).  Ironically, had that engine been  fitted to the new 2006 Focus RS, the team would also have been liable for a penalty for  using an engine which is no longer homologated.  With the penalties added, Gardemeister  ended the leg in seventh, 9.2sec ahead of Kresta in eighth. 

Toni Gardemeister/Jakke Honkanen: "It feels very good but I need time to get used to  it," he said. "It's different to drive compared with the previous Focus and I need to  get used to the feeling between the ground and the car.  It brakes and handles superbly  and there is more grip at the rear of the car.  It's really powerful at low revs."  Gardemeister lost more than 20 seconds after sliding off the road on the day's final  bush test. "Halfway through the stage I started to slide and ended up going over a bank  and into some small trees.  Perhaps I was going too fast and the surface was loose.  I've had a lot of dust coming into the car this afternoon and it was hard to see in  places," he added.

Roman Kresta/Jan Mozny: "It's fantastic!" said 30-year-old Kresta, whose performance was  remarkable considering he has never competed in Australia before.  "It feels like I'm  driving slowly, like I've taken the car shopping, but the engine is so good that I'm  driving really quickly.  I have a good feeling with it, although it feels totally  different to the previous Focus RS and I need to forget everything I learned about that  car.  It hasn't been easy though.  The roads are slippery and I'm driving a new car on a  new rally for me and trying to perfect my pace notes as well.  That's a lot to think  about at the same time!" Kresta dropped 25 seconds in a bizarre incident on stage eight.  "I landed after a jump and my door came open and the window dropped at the same time.  As I tried to close the door, I missed a junction and swiped a bank.  I had so much dust  come into the car through the window that I could not see for the rest of the stage," he  explained.

Peugeot

The first leg of the Rally Australia proved to be the very last for the Peugeot Total  team, who lost both cars on the opening morning. Marcus Gronholm broke his front- right  suspension on SS7, while Daniel Carlsson went off the road a kilometre and a half after  the start of SS3. Marcus was in third place and just eight seconds off the lead despite  two punctures, when he felt his front-right suspension collapse. He finished the stage,  losing more than a minute, but stopped on the road section back to service in Perth to  try to fix the damage. Marcus managed to make running repairs using some nuts taken off  the three undamaged shock absorbers, but one wheel was still rubbing against the arch.  Unfortunately Australian police are unforgiving when it comes to traffic law  enforcement, and with increasingly dense smoke coming from the affected wheel, they  forced Marcus to end his rally on the spot. (photos in our photo gallery)

Marcus Gronhölm/Timo Rautiainen: "On the preceding stage, I touched a rock on the apex  of a corner. At the end of the stage I checked for damage, but the suspension seemed to  be fine : there was just a bit of damage to a wheel. After 12 kilometres of the  following stage the front-right suspension suddenly collapsed on a right-hand corner. I  really do not understand what could have happened, as I did not feel anything at all.  It's a real shame to end what has been a fantastic career at Peugeot like this. I really  wanted to win here, in order to finish with a 19th victory !"

Daniel Carlsson/Mats Andersson: "It was the first time I was competing here and  unfortunately the notes that I made during the recce were not correct. I arrived at a  corner much too quickly and we started to roll. The car ended up on its wheels, but then  it suddenly caught fire. We got out quickly before it went up completely."

Skoda

Colin McRae made maximum use of his start position for the opening day of Rally  Australia to complete the first leg in 3rd place. Colin’s Škoda Motorsport World Rally  Team partner Armin Schwarz finished 11th as he contests the final rally of his career.  The roads of Western Australia offer a unique challenge to drivers. The ‘ball-bearing’  surface gives a huge advantage to drivers running later on the road and Colin’s 14th  start slot was ideal to benefit from the ‘cleaning’ process. After a cautious start to  to- day’s first forest stage while he reacquainted him- self with the Fabia WRC 05.  Colin was second quickest on the next behind Chris Atkinson (and equal with Sebastien  Loeb) to move into sixth place. He continued to set top 10 times and fourth place on SS7  took the Scot into third overall. When Loeb crashed out of the event on SS9, Colin moved  up to second ahead of the superspecials that concluded the opening leg but in a close  battle with Francois Duval. Armin survived a scare during yesterday’s shakedown when he  badly damaged the right rear of the Fabia WRC 05 against a tree stump. The mechanics did  a superb job rebuilding the car to make it ready for last night’s opening superspecial  in the heart of the city.

Colin McRae/Nicky Grist: Today has gone completely to plan. I drove a bit too slowly on  the opening stage but since then I’ve been able to push. The road position has obviously  helped but the car has been fine too. If we can do the same tomorrow then who knows what  sort of result is possible?

Armin Schwarz/Klaus Wicha: This is my final rally but I was so nervous before the start  it might have been my first WRC event. The stages here are very tricky and it is so easy  to make a mistake that I am not taking any risks and just trying to stay in the middle  of the road.

Mitsubishi

The Mitsubishi Motorsport WRC team enjoyed a positive opening leg of Rally Australia,  the final round of the FIA World Rally Championship. Harri Rovanperä and Risto  Pietiläinen hold a fine fourth overall in the lead Lancer WRC05, while team-mates Gigi  Galli and Guido d'Amore are sixth overnight.

Harri Rovanpera/Risto Pietilainen: "It's been a long day and I've been trying to  understand our new damper set-up," said Harri. "When the roads are fast, smooth and  flowing, it's very good, but also I feel the grip level is not always so great. I really  pushed in the last two forest stages and SS8 felt very good. We've had no technical  problems and hopefully we can maintain the pace tomorrow."

Gigi Galli/Guido d'Amore: "It's a good start for us and I'm feeling happy with the  set-up of the car," said Gigi. "I have to say we had some problems this morning with the  engine misfire and then we hit something and damaged the steering. This afternoon has  been fine, although we had a big moment in SS7 with the pace notes. Tires have been  good, although we're still learning about Pirelli's evolution tire."

News after Leg Two

Another action-packed day ended with François Duval (Citroen) on the verge of his maiden world rally win.  The Belgian enjoyed a troublefree day to lead Colin McRae (Skoda) by 27.1sec.  Duval hit the front when overnight leader Petter Solberg (Subaru) retired after hitting a kangaroo at 190kph midway through the second stage, damaging the car's radiator and oil cooling system.  He completed the test but could not continue.  McRae lost a few seconds when he switched from the automatic gearchange system to the back-up manual version on the first stage, but was fast all day.  Harri Rovanperä (Mitsubishi) is only 5.1sec behind in third.  The Finn held second but slipped behind McRae after spinning on the final morning stage.  He also survived a bizarre incident when a kangaroo jumped into the side of the car on the opening test.  Gigi Galli (Mitsubishi) and the privately-entered Manfred Stohl fought hard all day for fourth.  Stohl led initially but Galli moved in front, only to drop behind again a stage later and then fall back after overshooting a junction.  Chris Atkinson (Subaru) recovered well from yesterday's time loss to climb to sixth.

51 of the original 59 starters started Leg two. Temperatures ranged from 11-24°C with bright sunshine and blue skies throughout the day. No rain fell.

The final day is the shortest of the rally with only 103.32km of competition.  Competitors leave Perth at 06.30 and tackle two identical loops of three speed tests near Mundaring, 40km east, split by service back in Perth.  They return to the city for the finish ceremony at 14.45.

Citroen

Duval, 23 and currently the youngest driver in the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC), placed third in last year’s Telstra Rally Australia. Prior to Solberg’s retirement, Duval was placed second, only 13.9 seconds adrift of the lead with Colin McRae in third, a further 28.8 seconds behind the rally lead.

Duval has had a tumultuous season. The low point came when he was dropped by Citroën for two rounds in favour of retired Spanish driver, Carlos Sainz. Later this season he achieved a career best when he placed second in both Germany and Britain.

Sébastien Loeb/Daniel Elena: Retired

Francois Duval/Sven Smeets: "Everything went well in these stages, which are actually the ones I like most," said Duval. "I'm trying to follow the same pace as Harri and Colin thanks to the split times I receive. Now we will drive another time through yesterday's stages. I shouldn't drive too slow as my main rivals are driving flat out. But I should also stay on the road…"

Subaru

Both Subaru World Rally Team drivers demonstrated highly competitive pace throughout Leg two with Petter Solberg and Chris Atkinson taking a combined total of three stage wins. After losing time in Leg one Chris made good progress back up the leaderboard, taking two wins and moving from tenth to sixth place. Petter started the Leg with a comfortable overall lead, which he extended with a win in the first test of the day. But a shock lay in store on the next stage when a high speed collision with a hapless kangaroo destroyed his car's radiator. The resulting engine damage brought his rally to an end after SS13.

Petter Solberg/Phil Mills: I feel a bit like I did after our retirement in Japan. Everything was going perfectly, the car was just right, we had the speed and then something just came out of the blue. Obviously I'm terribly disappointed for Subaru and the whole team, they deserved this win. I sincerely hope we've used up all our bad luck now. I suppose I should be glad that the kangaroo was hunched down when we hit, if it had been up in the air then at 190kph I think it would have been through the screen. Up to that point things had been going perfectly. I wasn't pushing hard at all, there was no need for a big attack, but when you're on a long straight you always go flat out and there was nothing I could do to avoid it. It's incredible really, we didn't see a single one on the recce and yet this happens today. Still, it is some consolation that we have the silver medal in the drivers' championship this year and that's still a good result for all of us. We'll be back next year looking to set the record straight.

Chris Atkinson/Glen MacNeall: On the whole we've had a good day today. Things didn't get off to the best start with the spin on the first stage but considering the less than perfect road position and the lack of our front spoiler, we did all we could. This afternoon I was far happier with the way we went. We were able to win some stages and I'm pleased with our progress from tenth to sixth. For tomorrow I'll just keep on pushing and try to take more time from the guys in front. There are still another 100kms left to go and I'll do all I can to get the best possible result.

Ford

The all-new Ford Focus RS World Rally Car continued to impress during today's second leg of Rally Australia, the final round of the FIA World Rally Championship.  BP-Ford World Rally Team drivers Toni Gardemeister and Jakke Honkanen and team-mates Roman Kresta and Jan Tománek both set top four times on the demanding gravel speed tests in Western Australia, while neither suffered major mechanical problems on the car's debut. Kresta ended the leg in seventh with Gardemeister just 8.0sec behind in eighth.  Both are engrossed in a four-car battle for fifth, with the quartet covered by less than 20 seconds.  But of more importance for the BP-Ford team has been the excellent performance of the new Focus RS, which the team will use in the 2006 championship.

Toni Gardemeister/Jakke Honkanen: "The plug failed about 4km after the start of the stage and I had to drive with the engine running on only three cylinders," said the 30-year-old Finn.  "I changed two plugs before the next stage but that made no difference so I replaced the other two after the test and the car fired up properly on all four cylinders." He dropped about 35 seconds but recovered well to set a string of top five times during the afternoon stages.  "The grip was really good this afternoon, and although I ran wide on a few corners, it wasn't a big problem.  Once I overcame the spark plug difficulty, the car ran perfectly." Gardemeister and Honkanen encountered a bizarre incident during one of the Bannister stages.  "A bee and a spider were fighting on the dashboard of our car," explained Honkanen.  "I know it was a dangerous spider because it killed the bee!  Then the spider crawled off and I don't know where it is now.  It's a worry!"

Roman Kresta/Jan Mozny: "The roads this morning were more loose and slippery than yesterday, maybe because I was running fourth in the start order," he said.  "I missed two junctions on the third stage and another on the next test, the last one at high speed.  But I tried to drive carefully all day and not push too hard because I didn't want to make a mistake. "Atkinson knows these stages while I have never driven them before.  I'm happy because my times here are consistently close to drivers that I've not been this close to all season.  I feel really comfortable driving this car and it gives me a nice feeling," added Kresta.

Peugeot

Retired

Marcus Gronhölm/Timo Rautiainen: Retired

Daniel Carlsson/Mats Andersson: Retired

Skoda

Colin McRae made maximum use of his start position for the opening day of Rally Australia to complete the second leg in second place. Colin's Škoda Motorsport World Rally Team partner Armin Schwarz finished 10th as he contests the final rally of his career. With a group of five stages without service this morning it was a frustrating for Colin when he lost the automatic gearshift on the opening stage. It cost a few seconds on each stage and allowed the Scot to be caught and passed by Harri Rovanpera. However on the final stage of the group he regained the place and with overnight leader Petter Solberg retiring with engine damage after hitting a kangaroo, McRae returned to service in second place, 23.8 seconds behind Francois Duval. Armin moved into the top 10 during the morning, helped by second fastest on the third stage of the day but was taking no risks at all on his final appearance in the World Rally Championship.

Colin McRae/Nicky Grist: We lost some time this morning with the gearshift problem but it wasn't so bad. I'm working hard to win the battle with Harri and trying to keep Francois under pressure. Given that I've only driven the car in competition for less than 600kms I'd settle for second right now but I'm still going to try and win if I can. The Fabia is certainly good enough to set the times it needs.

Armin Schwarz/Klaus Wicha: It has been quite good fun today. If the roads are on their second use the ruts are very bad and you have to be careful not to get out of them but if the roads are smooth you can really enjoy sliding the car and entertaining the crowds. There are a lot of spectators watching the stages.

Mitsubishi

The Mitsubishi Motorsport WRC team looks set to round off the 2005 FIA World Rally Championship season on a high note, following fierce battles and a potential podium position at the end of the second leg of Rally Australia. Harri Rovanperä and Risto Pietiläinen have been on great form, the Finns claiming three fastest stage times to take an overnight third position. Team-mates “Gigi” Galli and Guido d'Amore climbed to fourth during the day, but slipped to fifth in the final forestry stage after losing time with an overshoot.

Harri Rovanpera/Risto Pietilainen: "It was a big kangaroo, like a horse!" said Harri. "A few kilometers into the stage, at top speed, the kangaroo jumped into the side of the car. The lock broke and the door flew open and we had to complete the rest of the stage like this. It's the worst place in the world for this to happen, with the amount of dust coming into the car. I'm feeling very confident and good with the car though, and the set-up of the suspension, so tomorrow we'll continue pushing hard and see what happens."

Gigi Galli/Guido d'Amore: "We're lucky to be here after the overshoot; it must have been the only corner in Australia without a tree,” said Gigi. “After that I lost my rhythm and we dropped more than 40 seconds, but fortunately not any positions. Overall though, the day has been good, especially as today's stages were all new to me."

Standings after Final Leg

1.  F Duval/S Smeets          Citroen Xsara    3hr 19min 55.0sec
2.  H Rovanperä/R Pietilainen  Mitsubishi Lancer 3hr 20min 47.9sec
3.  M Stohl/I Minor            Citroen Xsara    3hr 21min 28.0sec
4.  C Atkinson/G MacNeall      Subaru Impreza    3hr 21min 34.0sec
5.  G Galli/G D'Amore          Mitsubishi Lancer 3hr 22min 59.4sec
6.  R Kresta/J Tománek        Ford Focus RS    3hr 23min 04.0sec
7.  D Solà/X Amigo            Ford Focus RS    3hr 26min 12.4sec
8.  A Schwarz/K Wicha          Skoda Fabia      3hr 27min 59.3sec
9.  T Arai/T Sircombe          Subaru Impreza    3hr 35min 38.2sec     
10. M Higgins/D Barritt        Subaru Impreza    3hr 37min 24.8sec

News after Final Leg

After one of the most dramatic rallies of the season, Belgium's François Duval (Citroen) claimed his first world rally victory.  He was untroubled today to beat Harri Rovanperä (Mitsubishi) by 52.9sec.  Private entrant Manfred Stohl claimed his second podium of the season in third after Colin McRae (Skoda) retired in the mid-morning service with three stages remaining.  A routine clutch change took longer than expected and he exceeded the time limit.  Chris Atkinson (Subaru) completed a remarkable fight back from 13th after day one steering problems to claim fourth, failing to overhaul Stohl by just 6.0sec.  Gigi Galli (Mitsubishi) held off Kresta for fifth while Armin Schwarz (Skoda) claimed the final drivers' point on his last rally before retirement.

49 of the original 59 starters started the final Leg. Temperatures ranged from 11-23°C. The day started slightly overcast and hazy, but no rain fell during the day.

Leg three comprised two loops of three stages and 103.32 competitive kilometres with the speed tests taking place near the town of Mundaring to the east of Perth.

Citroen

A first for François Duval! Impeccably partnered by his co-driver Sven Smeets, and five days before his 25th birthday, the Citroën driver coolly picked up the first world class win of his career today, a feat which only Henri Toivonen and Markku Alén achieved at a younger age. François and Sven also go down in history as the first Belgians to ever win a round of the World Rally Championship. Meanwhile, with a total of eleven wins to its name in 2005, the Versailles-Satory-based team has beaten the record for the highest number of wins in a single season, a record that has held since 1988. The result also enables the Xsara WRC, which will be run on a private basis from now on, to end its works career on a high note. From 58 starts since its debut in Catalonia in 2001, the car has won 24 times.

Sébastien Loeb/Daniel Elena: Retired

Francois Duval/Sven Smeets: "I've been waiting and hoping for this victory for so long," beamed François. "I would like to say a big thank you to Citroën, to my parents, to Guy Fréquelin who has given me so much help, and to Sven who has done a tremendous job… I naturally found the final stages very long. But everything went OK. It's a great way to end what has at times been a difficult season for me..."

Subaru

Subaru World Rally Team's Chris Atkinson finished his debut year in the World Rally Championship in style with a fourth place on today's final Leg of Rally Australia, only six seconds away from a podium finish. The result is the 25-year-old's second top four finish since joining the team at the start of the year and also equalled Ross Dunkerton's 1993 effort as the highest placed local driver in the Australian round of the World Championship. Atkinson was the dominant driver throughout the weekend, recording the fastest time on nine of the 26 stages, four more than any other driver, taking his number of stage wins for the year to 15. The only drivers to win more stages throughout the year are world champions Sébastien Loeb, Marcus Gronholm and Petter Solberg. Despite retiring on yesterday's second Leg, Petter finished the 2005 season in second position in the drivers' championship, continuing the record of Subaru World Rally Team drivers finishing in the top two since 1999.

Petter Solberg/Phil Mills: Retired

Chris Atkinson/Glen MacNeall: It's been an interesting rally, one with some highs and lows, but considering how much time we lost on Friday, to finish fourth today feels incredible! I pushed as hard as I could today and we so nearly caught Stohl, but to close the gap from almost 50 seconds to five shows we did a good job and I'm extremely happy. I want to say thanks to all the guys in the team for their hard work, they did a fantastic job and thanks too to all the supporters on the stages, it was great to see you all rooting for us! Of course it's satisfying to finish our first WRC season on a high, but in fact I think we've been able to take something positive from all of the rallies this year. Together Glenn and I have learned so much and I can't wait to get back out on the stages again next season.

Ford

The all-new Ford Focus RS World Rally Car claimed two special stage victories on today's final leg of Rally Australia to end a hugely impressive debut for Ford's 2006 FIA World Rally Championship challenger.  BP-Ford World Rally Team drivers Roman Kresta and Jan Tománek and team-mates Toni Gardemeister and Jakke Honkanen each set a fastest time as Ford secured third in the final championship standings with a record-breaking 60th consecutive points finish. Kresta finished sixth on the four-day rally based on demanding gravel tracks in Western Australia.  Gardemeister retired on the penultimate speed test with a broken water pump drive belt but the performance of the new Focus RS delighted BP-Ford team director Malcolm Wilson.

Toni Gardemeister/Jakke Honkanen: Gardemeister started in eighth and was delighted with the pace of the Focus RS after the team discovered a leak in the turbo pipe which was replaced this morning.  "The car had much more pace today than yesterday and I'm 100 per cent sure that if the car had been working like this yesterday, I would have set a fastest time because it felt totally different today," said the 30-year-old Finn, who finished fourth in the drivers' standings. However, he did not have long to wait as he powered to fastest time through the opening stage of the second loop.  "The car felt superb, there was just so much power there," he added.  "It was a shame to retire so close to the finish but the main aim of the weekend was to test the car and everyone has learned a huge amount.  It's a great car to drive and I'm delighted it has proved so competitive so soon.  Next year's rules mean the cars must use less technology so it's really encouraging for the team for the Focus RS to be a match for the current cars."

Roman Kresta/Jan Mozny: Kresta, starting in seventh, dropped 30 seconds on the short opening stage after spinning.  "The road was extremely narrow and the car became wedged between two trees," said the 29-year-old Czech.  However, he recovered well and set fastest time on the final stage as he just failed to overhaul fifth placed Gigi Galli, pulling back more than 30 seconds during the last three stages. It was Kresta's first stage win on gravel and sealed an excellent performance on a rally in which he was competing for the first time against rivals with far more experience.  The result ensured he finished eighth in the drivers' championship. "I made a few small mistakes over the weekend but the performance of the car has been fantastic," he said.  "I've never had the opportunity to drive a car like this before, I've never driven anything as good as this Focus RS.  I can't believe what I have achieved because it was my first time on these roads and I hadn't even driven the car until the shakedown on the morning of the start."

Peugeot

Retired

Marcus Gronhölm/Timo Rautiainen: Retired

Daniel Carlsson/Mats Andersson: Retired

Skoda

Colin McRae's dream of getting the Škoda Fabia WRC 05 onto the podium of Rally Australia was shattered when a normally routine clutch change took longer than expected just three stages from the finish. At the time the Scot was lying third and ready to push hard to try and take second place from Harri Rovanpera who had been dueling for the position with McRae for most of the rally. Fears that the clutch might not survive the final three stages forced the team to replace it in service this morning. Unfortunately the change did not go to plan and the clock ticked away past McRae's permitted service time. Earlier in the event a similar change on Armin's car took just 22 minutes, well within the time allowed. Members of every rival team gathered to watch the drama unfold and when it was realised that the rally was over they burst into spontaneous applause in acknowledgement of McRae's drive to what might easily have been Škoda Motorsport's best ever finish in the World Rally Championship. The dramatic final morning allowed Armin Schwarz to finish eighth on his final appearance as a WRC driver, the best result of the season for the veteran German driver.

Colin McRae/Nicky Grist: This was a huge disappointment retiring so close to the end. We were confident of passing Harri for second place but it all came to nothing when what should have been a routine clutch change went wrong. These things can happen at any time and with any team but it was especially frustrating for it to happen just now. It was a good dream while it lasted. I've proved a lot to myself and also a lot about the Fabia WRC 05 and I hope it will have a positive effect on the future of the team.

Armin Schwarz/Klaus Wicha: Yesterday was fun but today's stages weren't the best to end my career as a driver. It has been a tough year and I have to admit that my motivation hasn't been as high as it should.

Mitsubishi

The Mitsubishi Motorsport crew of Harri Rovanperä and Risto Pietiläinen claimed the team's best result of the season today when they finished on the podium in second position. The Finns claimed five fastest stage times during the three-day event, demonstrating the increased performance of the Lancer WRC05. Team-mates “Gigi” Galli and Guido d'Amore finished a fine fifth in only their second outing in Rally Australia. Harri Rovanperä started the day in third but in the first stage he reduced the gap to Colin McRae to just 3.5 seconds. Then, in the longest stage of the event (Helena North), the Finn powered ahead of his rival to claim a 4.7 second advantage in the Mitsubishi Lancer WRC05. Consolidating the position in the last of these three stages, Harri beat rally leader, Citroën's François Duval, and a charging Chris Atkinson in the Subaru Impreza, to claim another fastest stage time. Harri and Risto returned to the mid-leg service with a 6.9 second advantage going into the final three stages. However, the task ahead was made much easier when what should have been a routine clutch change on McRae's Škoda saw the crew go over the time permitted. So, even though the pressure was off the Mitsubishi Lancer WRC05 crew, they still had three stages to complete without mistakes before returning to Perth in a fantastic second position. Gigi Galli, who had climbed as high as fourth yesterday, slipped from fifth to seventh this morning. The Italian had no problems, but was once again tackling stages for the first time and intent on finishing the rally without incident. This afternoon however he still had to continue defending his position from a charging Roman Kresta and, following the retirements of McRae and Toni Gardemeister, the crew claimed fifth overall.

Harri Rovanpera/Risto Pietilainen: "I am very, very happy for the whole team," said a delighted Harri, "and especially for all the mechanics who have worked so hard since the beginning of the season. It's been a great rally for us; the car has worked well, the performance and speed has been good and the feeling has been right all weekend. It's a great way to round off the year."

Gigi Galli/Guido d'Amore: "It's been a really, really tough rally," said Gigi. "Now I can see and believe why it's so important to have experience of this event with the surface, pace notes, speed; everything that makes a difference to your performance. I have to keep in mind our goal was to finish, but fifth is a good position for us."