2007 Rally of Japan - Leg One

Intermediate standings after ten of 27 special stages 01. Mikko Hirvonen/Jarmo Lehtinen (Fin) Ford Focus RS WRC 07 + 1:00:30,8 hrs.

02. Sebastien Loeb/Daniel Elena (F) Citroen C4 WRC + 10,3 sec.

03. Jari-Matti Latvala/Miika Antilla (Fin) Ford Focus RS WRC 06 + 13,7 sec.

04. Daniel Sordo/Marc Marti (Spa) Citroen C4 WRC + 40,6 sec.

05. Henning Solberg/Cato Menkerud (Nor) Ford Focus RS WRC WRC 06 + 48,4 sec.

06. Manfred Stohl/Ilka Minor (A) Citroen Xsara WRC + 1:30,0 min.

07. Xavier Pons/Xavier Amigo (Spa) Subaru Impreza WRC + 2:02,6 min.

08. Luis Perez Companc/Jose Maria Volta (RA) Ford Focus RS WRC 06 + 2:20,8 min.

1. BP-Ford

2. Citroen Total

3. Subaru

4. OMV Kronos Citroen

5. Stobart M-Sport Ford

6. Munchis Ford

1. BP-Ford

Ford World Rally Team drivers Mikko Hirvonen and Jarmo Lehtinen lead Rally Japan after today's dramatic opening leg in which three frontrunners were sidelined. The Finns returned to the rally base in Obihiro with a 10.3sec advantage in their Ford Focus RS World Rally Car after a long and tiring day's competition in the forests north-east of the city. There was bitter disappointment for team-mates Marcus Grönholm and Timo Rautiainen. The FIA World Rally Championship leaders crashed into a tree stump on the final speed test of this morning's competition while leading the rally. The heavy impact damaged the roll cage on their Focus RS and although the car was mechanically sound, the Finns were prevented from continuing for safety reasons.

Marcus Grönholm/Timo Rautiainen: "The accident happened at a third gear corner at a point in the stage where I changed my pace notes during the recce. It's faster there this year because some trees have been cut down. I slid wide and the right rear wheel hit some straw bales. The impact threw the car down a bank into a tree stump. The impact was hard and on my door.

The stage was covered with loose gravel and was slippery all the way through."

Mikko Hirvonen/Jarmo Lehtinen: "I have the same fantastic feeling with the car that I had during Rally Finland in August. Conditions this morning were difficult with fog and ice on roads that were narrow and slippery but we survived. Visibility was down to 100m on the first stage. It was a shock to lose Marcus and now I have to drive to win to help his title chances."

2. Citroen Total

The long and challenging first leg of the 2007 Rally Japan has seen Sébastien Loeb and Daniel Elena conclude the day in second position overall with their Citroën C4 WRC, 10.3s behind the provisional leader. Their Citroën-Total team-mates Dani Sordo and Marc Martí follow two places behind in fourth, 40.6s off the lead.

Sebastien Loeb/Daniel Elena: "It hasn't been the easiest of days and I'm glad it's behind us. The gap ahead of us isn't big and we are still in with a real chance,"

Dani Sordo/Marc Marti: "There was no

question of taking any risks but my pace actually wasn't bad. Our split-times on SS3 show that we were up there with the leaders until I was forced to come to a sideways halt to avoid hitting a bridge. I was able to continue and I went on to win the next stage (SS4)."

3. Subaru

Leg one of Rally Japan proved disappointing for the Subaru World Rally Team after two of its three cars retired from the event. Petter Solberg's day came to a premature end with a gear selection problem after SS5, while Chris Atkinson crashed off the road during SS6.

Petter Solberg/Phil Mills: "I can honestly say that I've tried my hardest today, I did everything I could and, of course, it's very frustrating that I haven't been able to get the result I wanted - especially here on Subaru's own rally - and I'm really sorry to all the Subaru supporters for that. We struggled with the balance and the handling of the car pretty much from the first stage today, and this badly affected the amount of grip we had. Even though we made a good tyre choice I just wasn't able to push at all. After the first service things still didn't feel 100 per cent, and we were lucky not to stop after we went off on SS5. But in the end a gear selection problem meant we had no option other than to retire. We'll be out on the stages again tomorrow, and I sincerely hope I'll be able to give our fans something to cheer about."

Chris Atkinson/Stephane Prevot: "I'm not entirely sure what happened yet, we'll need to have a look at the on-board camera and the data to find out for sure. What I do know is that I was pushing hard through a sequence of bends when the car drifted wide and slid into a ditch. We were still going pretty quickly when we ran out of road, broadsided and took out a tree with the back door. The impact was heavy and there's no chance we'll be able to restart tomorrow. The accident was the end of a pretty frustrating rally for me. We should have been faster this morning, especially as we had a good road position, but the pace never really materialised. We came here with high hopes and expectations, but we've let ourselves and Subaru down."

Xavier Pons/Xavier Amigo: "This morning was not so good for us as I felt unhappy with the balance of the car and couldn't really push. It was difficult to learn too much about the surface as on the second passes it got so badly cut up, but I feel a little more prepared for tomorrow. We made some changes to the suspension during the midday service which made the car feel more comfortable and easier to drive, so this afternoon was better. It's not perfect, but I am happy with what we have at the moment, and with how today has gone for us. We can still do more going into leg two so that I feel more confident in the car, but we were fastest on the final stage of today which was good for me and also for the team. It's a long and difficult rally, so I am pleased that we had no problems today. Seventh isn't bad but tomorrow is a long day so we will keep pushing and see what happens."

4. OMV Kronos Citroen

The OMV Kronos Citroen World Rally Team is back on the road to success at the "Rally Japan", the 14th run to the FIA World Rally Championship. Manfred Stohl and Ilka Minor were able to secure a place in scoring ranks after the first day. Sixth intermediate place also means that the Austrian OMV duo is on the way to their best result this season. The reasons for the good performance are easily explained: feeling and speed are back again.

Manfred Stohl/Ilka Minor: "It was anything but easy. Such conditions are a real aggravation of penalty, especially at the beginning of a rally when you're still trying to find your rhythm. But we adapted very well and Ilka did a sensational job. Now we'll have to keep up this performance level for the next two days. The difficult conditions are surely to my advantage."

5. Stobart M-Sport Ford

Round 14 of the FIA World Rally Championship, Rally Japan, has offered the Stobart M-Sport Ford Rally Team its best opening leg with both nominated points scoring drivers inside the top five.

Henning Solberg/Cato Menkerud: "The first stage this morning was difficult because of the fog but generally it has been a very good start to the rally for me. The feeling with the car is good and my confidence is high again now that we are back on gravel. I am very happy with how we have started this rally. I had a big moment in the afternoon stages and a spin on one of the shorter stages where we slid wide on a fast right hand corner and stalled the car losing about eight seconds; but most people seemed to be making mistakes there also. Some of the stages were quite rough and slippery and if it continues to rain overnight then they will be even more difficult tomorrow. I have been driving as fast as I can today but haven't been taking any big risks."

Jari-Matti Latvala/Miikka Anttila: "It was a fantastic start to the rally for me to be leading even though the conditions were quite difficult this morning. The grip was changing a lot and in some places the roads were dry but very damp, and sometimes muddy, under the trees. This afternoon has been harder as Mikko has been going a lot faster than me. I have had a really good feeling with the car but on stages 6 and 7 I had slightly less confidence and lost a bit of time as I didn't want to make any silly mistakes. We really need to get to the finish of this event, the experience is extremely important. The car has been fantastic today and the tyres are working very well. To be leading here has been an amazing feeling but I know not to get too excited, I made mistakes in Sardinia and Finland when leading so now I will concentrate on my driving. Tonight we will make some changes ahead of tomorrow's stages which I am more familiar with."

Matthew Wilson/Michael Orr: "The conditions were very difficult this morning, firstly with fog on the first stage and then with mud and slippery conditions on the third stage. There was a six-kilometre section on stage 3 that was very fast but muddy and I just didn't have the confidence to push to the max there. Generally it has been a good start to the rally though and everything is feeling very good with the car. Most of the time we lost today was on the one stage and there was a section that just didn't work well for us. Apart from that it all went well and our times were pretty good. We lost some time on stage 7 after sliding down into a ditch on a left hand corner and were very lucky to get away with it unscathed. The conditions were tough for the opening day but I felt I coped quite well and am happy with my driving today."

6. Munchis Ford

No information available

7. Skoda Czech Rally Team

CRT-Skoda are not participating in Rally Japan. Please click the link above for all the latest Skoda news.

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Remaining Event Schedule

Saturday 27 October: Leg 2 Obihiro - Obihiro

Serv C Kita Aikoku (10 mins) 05.05

SS11 Rikubetsu 3 2.73km 07.13

SS12 Puray 1 34.96km 07.44

SS13 Niueo 1 20.75km 08.23

SS14 Sipirkakim 22.43km 09.01

Serv D Kita Aikoku (30 mins) 11.16

SS15 Rikubetsu 4 2.73km 13.44

SS16 Puray 2 34.96km 14.15

SS17 Niueo 2 20.75km 14.54

SS18 Sipirkakim Short 4.67km 15.47

SS19 Obihiro 3 1.35km 17.57

SS20 Obihiro 4 1.35km 18.07

Serv E Kita Aikoku (45 mins) 18.20

Finish Kita Aikoku 19.05

Total 146.68km

Sunday 28 October: Leg 3 Obihiro - Obihiro

Serv F Kita Aikoku (10 mins) 05.40

SS21 Rera Kamuy 1 8.76km 07.06

SS22 Panke Nikorpet 1 17.04km 07.29

SS23 Penke 1 22.19km 08.09

Serv G Kita Aikoku (30 mins) 09.49

SS24 Rera Kamuy 2 8.76km 11.35

SS25 Panke Nikorpet 2 17.04km 11.58

SS26 Penke 2 22.19km 12.38

SS27 Obihiro 5 1.35km 14.33

Finish Kita Aikoku 15.00

Total 97.33km

Rally total 350.19km