Rally New Zealand – after Stage 9, Mystery Creek 2
Sixty-six of the original 68 starters left Hamilton early this morning for the second day's competition on this 11th round of the FIA World Rally Championship. Ten are competing under SupeRally rules having retired yesterday and all face the longest leg of this three-day event with 130.10km of action lying in wait. Drivers completed a two-hour liaison section to the morning's three speed tests near Port Waikato, 100km north-west of Hamilton.
In contrast to yesterday's mud, the roads were dry and dust clouds kicking up from the rear of the cars provided spectacular images as they weaved through the stunning North Island countryside. Temperatures were still cool, however, and tyre choice wasn't easy. BP-Ford World Rally Team's overnight leaders Marcus Grönholm and Timo Rautiainen opted for BFGoodrich's medium soft compound with small cuts carved into the tyres on their Focus RS World Rally Car.
The 39-year-old Finnish driver was second fastest on the opening 17.22km Port Waikato test, ceding 3.1sec to closest rival Sébastien Loeb, but retaliated to win the following 13.88km Possum to retake 5.0sec. However, as temperatures rose and the roads dried, Grönholm's tyres started to lose their edge and he dropped 11.3sec to Loeb in the 31.58km Franklin test. He ended the morning with fastest time over the short Mystery Creek test to return to service with his lead reduced to 4.0sec.
"I took tyres that were too soft and didn't work on the long stage," he explained. "The car was like a snake and was sliding a lot. I lost my rhythm and lost time to Loeb, who had a harder, more suitable tyre. Tyre choice was crucial but it's hard to make the right decision standing here when the stages are two hours and more than 100km away. I have to try to take back some of that lost time now."
Team-mates Mikko Hirvonen and Jarmo Lehtinen, third in their Abu Dhabi-backed Focus RS, opted for the same rubber as Grönholm, but with no cuts. The 27-year-old Finn was third and second on the opening two tests but encountered similar difficulties as his team-mate in Franklin. However, he returned to Hamilton having extended his lead over fourth-placed Jari-Matti Latvala to 52.3sec.
"The tyres were OK for the second stage but in general they were too soft," said Hirvonen. "The roads were drier than we thought this morning. I've not pushed too hard but I wanted to stay close and produce some good times so that if anything happens to one of the guys ahead, I can be there. I'll take a harder compound now and hope it stays dry. The afternoon stages are wider and faster, a bit more like the roads in Finland, so that should suit me."
Leaderboard after stage 9 of 18
1. M Grönholm/T Rautiainen FIN Ford Focus RS 2hr 11min 56.3sec
2. S Loeb/D Elena F Citroen C4 2hr 12min 00.3sec
3. M Hirvonen/J Lehtinen FIN Ford Focus RS 2hr 12min 53.3sec
4. J-M Latvala/M Anttila FIN Ford Focus RS 2hr 13min 45.6sec
5. C Atkinson/S Prévot AUS Subaru Impreza 2hr 13min 47.2sec
6. D Sordo/M Marti E Citroen C4 2hr 14min 07.0sec
7. P Solberg/P Mills N Subaru Impreza 2hr 14min 34.4sec
8. U Aava/K Sikk EE Mitsubishi Lancer 2hr 17min 50.5sec
9. M Wilson/M Orr GB Ford Focus RS 2hr 18min 44.4sec
10 H Solberg/C Menkerud N Ford Focus RS 2hr 19min 43.2sec