2007 Rally Catalunya - Leg One

Leaderboard after Leg 1

1. S Loeb/D Elena F Citroen C4

1hr 22min 16.5sec

2. D Sordo/M Marti E Citroen C4

1hr 22min 27.8sec

3. M Grönholm/T Rautiainen FIN Ford Focus RS 1hr 23min

07.1sec

4. M Hirvonen/J Lehtinen FIN Ford Focus RS 1hr

23min 09.7sec

5. F Duval/P Pivato B Citroen Xsara

1hr 23min 42.3sec

6. P Solberg/P Mills N Subaru Impreza 1hr

23min 51.9sec

7. J-M Latvala/M Anttila FIN Ford Focus RS 1hr

24min 25.7sec

8. C Atkinson/S Prévot AUS Subaru Impreza 1hr 24min

36.7sec

9. X Pons/X Amigo E Subaru Impreza 1hr

25min 34.8sec

10 H Solberg/C Menkerud N Ford Focus RS 1hr 27min

59.8sec

1. BP-Ford

2. Citroen Total

3. Subaru

4. OMV Kronos Citroen

5. Stobart M-Sport Ford

6. Munchis Ford

1. BP-Ford

BP-Ford World Rally Team lies third and fourth following today's opening leg of Rally de España during which the ever-changing road conditions sparked a fascinating game of tactics between the major players. Marcus Grönholm and Timo Rautiainen lead the BP-Ford squad in third in a Focus RS World Rally Car while team-mates Mikko Hirvonen and Jarmo Lehtinen are fourth in a similar vehicle. Each won one of the day's six asphalt speed tests.

Marcus Grönholm/Timo Rautiainen: "It felt like I could go off on every corner so I drove cautiously. I need to think about the points to be gained from third place rather than risk losing everything by chasing Loeb in the rain on the wrong tyres. I had no feeling with the car in the wet and I was scared to push. The car was great in the dry on the previous stage but the rain came just 15 minutes too early. I hate this inconsistent weather and I hope tomorrow is dry so that I can keep the pressure on in case Seb makes a mistake."

Mikko Hirvonen/Jarmo Lehtinen: "At the start of the first stage, on damp roads, I had no confidence. I was seven seconds slower than Marcus on the first 4km. It was the right tyre choice, it was just a struggle for me in those conditions. The car was happy, it's just the driver that wasn't! I felt more comfortable with my driving on the drier roads and I had a better feeling. It's tricky to choose the right set-up when conditions are mixed like this. The whole package has to be exactly right to set the best times.

Now I need to keep the pressure on tomorrow to try to keep François Duval behind me. It's important for the team's title challenge and for Marcus'

title hopes that we both finish ahead of him."

2. Citroen Total

The first leg of the 2007 Rally Catalunya ended this evening in Salou with Citroën C4 WRCs holding first and second places. Sébastien Loeb and Daniel Elena top the provisional leaderboard, while Dani Sordo and Marc Martí follow in second spot in their identical machine, just behind their team-mates.

Sebastien Loeb/Daniel Elena: "It's been a dramatic opening day but the car and the team ensured we came through it unscathed. It's looking very encouraging at the moment, but there's still a long way to go."

Dani Sordo/Marc Marti: "It was a positive day for us, too. The last stage was really very difficult but I'm pleased to say that we succeeded in pulling even further clear of Marcus. Although it's not the most important thing this weekend, it was nice to lead a World Championship rally for the first time in my career. and on home soil, too. That was something special but, as I say, the main thing is to be ahead of Grönholm on Sunday afternoon."

3. Subaru

The Subaru World Rally Team has all three cars within the top ten at the end of leg one, after a tough day on the asphalt roads of Rally Catalunya. With conditions starting damp, the asphalt was greasy and the level of grip hard to predict for the first two stages, but dry by the time the drivers started

SS4 at 13:34. As grip was improving, the drivers were thrown a final curveball when heavy rain fell just as SS6 started, catching most teams by surprise on a dry setup for the last 26.48km of leg one. Petter Solberg finished the day sixth overall, Chris Atkinson eighth and Xevi Pons ninth.

Petter Solberg/Phil Mills: "We've had no real problems today - just a stall on a start line one time - but that's it. The weather conditions certainly made things interesting, and it was very tricky at times, but overall I'm happy with what I've done here. Tomorrow we'll try to do the same again, but of course we'll always be looking for improvement wherever we can. I think it's possible to beat Duval - that would be good."

Chris Atkinson/Glen MacNeall: "It's been okay. We didn't get off to the best start, with the wrong tyre choice for the opening section, and the changeable weather and the rain this afternoon have made it quite a tricky day all round. But it's good to get through, and good to gain experience in these conditions, which I guess I don't really have much of on asphalt. It's all valuable knowledge. We'll make some changes to the car tonight and see if we can't go a little quicker tomorrow. I think we can move up a place, but beyond that depends on how good it all feels."

Xavier Pons/Xavier Amigo: "It's been a difficult day for me. We had some problems with the brakes in the morning and on the last stage my windscreen wipers broke right when the rain started to fall, so on balance it's hard to be too positive. Okay, we're in ninth position now, and there's still a long way to go, but getting a good result on this rally is going to be extremely hard. I'll do my best tomorrow, but from now on I'm going to be preparing a little for the next rally in Corsica at the same time as completing this one."

4. OMV Kronos Citroen

The OMV Kronos Citroen WRT has mixed feelings when looking back on the first day of the "Rallye RACC Catalunya", the eleventh run to the FIA World Rally Championship. Following the early retirement of Manfred Stohl/Ilka Minor on special stage three the hopes lay on Francois Duval (Bel) and co Patrick Pivato (Fra). And the Belgian OMV driver in the Citroen Xsara WRC impressed with best-time on SS 3 and third place on the fourth special stage.

Following day one in Spain he currently lies in good fifth overall place.

Manfred Stohl/Ilka Minor: Retired (accident)

Francois Duval/Patrick Pivato: "It was a little bit too hard and slippery for my taste. The car was moving around a bit much."

5. Stobart M-Sport Ford

Both points scoring Stobart VK M-Sport Ford crews are firmly positioned

inside the top-ten after day 1 of Rally RACC Catalunya Costa Daurada.

Jari-Matti Latvala/Miikka Anttila lead the way in seventh position while

Henning Solberg/Cato Menkerud round things off in tenth.

Henning Solberg/Cato Menkerud: "To be in the top-ten after my first day, and

my first ever attempt at this rally, is quite a good sensation. I enjoyed

the stages this morning but I have no experience of this event and this is

something I must remember and try not to get carried away during the rally.

I didn't have a perfect feeling with the car and it's hard to find the exact

amount to push. It's difficult to know exactly how to drive this car on

tarmac and my style at the moment is not working too well. The last stage

today was so slippery as it rained heavily and we were on slicks; I had to

be very careful under braking and keep a steady head. Tomorrow should be a

good day as I'm learning with every stage I complete."

Jari-Matti Latvala/Miikka Anttila: "I have made good progress today both

with my car set-up and also my driving style on asphalt. The car is handling

really well now which means I can concentrate on improving my driving

technique. When the roads here are dry I have a lot of confidence but the

mixed conditions made it really difficult this morning. I can say that the

last stage today was quite important for me. It was probably my best

performance on wet asphalt and it has been a good way to end the first day

here. The stages for tomorrow are similar to the last two today and I had a

good run on these; I'm looking forward now to the second day."

Matthew Wilson/Michael Orr: "I have been trying to learn on this event and

the conditions have made this very difficult. The car and tyres have been

great but the surface changes so much on the stages that it's hard to get

into a rhythm and get confidence. If the weather had stayed dry in the

afternoon then it would have helped but the heavy rain on the last stage put

paid to that; and with my wiper problem, it was an extremely difficult

situation. I have taken good experience from today and we are just outside

the top-ten; it's a good first day and hopefully if it keeps dry tomorrow, I

can up my confidence and up my pace."

6. Munchis Ford

No information available.

7. Skoda Czech Rally Team

Jan Kopecký-Filip Schovánek crew will not continue this year in the great

results from the past two starts. The third special stage has become fatal

for the Czech Rally Team Kopecký crew, when on the tenth kilometer their

Skoda Fabia WRC has left the track.

Jan Kopecky/Filip Schovanek: "In the two initial special stages I was happy

with the times we ran, although our Skoda Fabia WRC was not exactly tight in

long turns. This is why we changed the car's setup in the service zone, but

those were no fundamental changes. On the third stage, I unfortunately hit a

rock in one of the turns and our car lost contact with the road surface. The

ensuing situation was impossible to correct and as a result we went off the

track. Our Skoda Fabia WRC ended up on the roof under the road level, but

according to initial inspection it should not be badly damaged. Me and Filip

we both escaped unharmed,"

__________________________________________________________________

Remaining Event Schedule

Saturday 6 October: Leg 2 Salou - Salou

Serv D PortAventura (10 mins) 08.00

SS7 Vilaplana 1 13.29km 08.43

SS8 Coll del Grau 1 26.33km 09.37

SS9 Margalef - La Palma d'Ebre 1 15.85km 10.16

SS10 La Serra d'Almos 1 4.11km 11.21

Serv E PortAventura (30 mins) 12.19

SS11 Vilaplana 2 13.29km 13.22

SS12 Coll del Grau 2 26.33km 14.16

SS13 Margalef - La Palma d'Ebre 2 15.85km 14.55

SS14 La Serra d'Almos 2 4.11km 16.00

Serv F PortAventura (45 mins) 17.03

Finish PortAventura 17.48

Total 119.16km

Sunday 7 October: Leg 3 Salou - Salou

Serv G PortAventura (10 mins) 07.30

SS15 Riudecanyes 1 16.32km 08.15

SS16 Colldejou 1 26.51km 09.16

Serv H PortAventura (30 mins) 10.54

SS17 Riudecanyes 2 16.32km 11.59

SS18 Colldejou 2 26.51km 13.00

Finish Salou 14.50

Total 85.66km

Rally total 352.87km