Pace Notes

I'll admit it. In Sardinia earlier this year, I was unconvinced about Mikko Hirvonen. I should have known better.

Ford's lead driver, Hirvonen didn't exactly hit the ground running in this year's World Rally Championship, but speed, nerve, and consistency have brought him through the first half of the season at the top of the table. And he's there on merit.

Mid-way through the opening day of Rally d'Italia and Hirvonen was all at sea. Leading the championship, he was running first on the road and being utterly crucified as he tried to guide his Focus RS WRC 07 on the safest and speediest course through the gravely Sardinian roads.

Sebastien Loeb and Hirvonen's team-mate Jari-Matti Latvala were both on a mission not just to lead the rally, but to thoroughly demoralise Hirvonen; nice blokes the pair of them, but they had no compunction about kicking Hirvonen while he was down.

Mikko Hirvonen and Jarmo Lehtinen at speed in the Acropolis Rally © LAT

One rally later, on the Acropolis, and Hirvonen's head is in a much better place. This time he's got the pace - just not the right line, as both he and Latvala knobble their Fords on the same rock.

And then came the last round of the championship, the Rally of Turkey - arguably Hirvonen's finest win.

There was plenty of talk about Ford's tactics to manipulate the Finn into the strongest possible position on the second day, but when Hirvonen nosed his Ford into the final morning - at the head of the field - he was on his own. And he did a fantastic job to defend that place and keep both Latvala and Loeb at bay.

For the two previous rallies, much had been made of Loeb's ability to keep his rubber pristine while the Finns, Latvala in particular, lunched the Pirellis carrying them through the rough gravel.

By the end of the second run through Olympos test in Turkey, Loeb's covers were battered as well. The Frenchman had done his best to unsettle the Fords in Turkey, but they held firm and went into the mid-year break with the lead in both championships.

By his own admission, Loeb has to change tack for the second half of 2008. Yes, he has been the fastest driver. Yes, prior to Turkey he had won every rally (five) he had finished. But he was still second. The very fact that Hirvonen has forced Loeb into altering his plans is a significant moral and psychological victory for the series leader.

Ahead of this year, and following the retirement of Marcus Gronholm, there was talk that Loeb's record fifth consecutive drivers' title would be well on the way by now. Well, it's not. Far from it.

But, don't hold your breath. There's time for a title whitewash yet. The Ford men's biggest fear in the coming months has to be the three asphalt rallies. Loeb's record in Germany, Corsica and Catalunya is beyond enviable. It's astonishing: unbeaten on Rally Deutschland, you have to go back to 2004 to find a name other than Loeb on the silverware on the other two events.

It's on those three rallies that Loeb's Citroen team-mate Dani Sordo has to play his part. The Spaniard's form early this year has been disappointing. He's in the best car and spends most of his time standing next to the fastest rally driver on the planet, but precious little of Loeb's speed seems to have rubbed off on Sordo.

If he's going to quieten the critics, he has to do it on the tar. Sordo has to threaten Loeb on every sealed surface inch to come on the three rallies. And then, at the last minute, he will have to accept his fate as a second driver and stand aside to allow Loeb to collect 10 points, leaving eight for him.

This is the only way Citroen can mount an assault on the manufacturers' championship - and the best way to derail Hirvonen's hopes for a maiden drivers' crown.

Sebastien Loeb © LAT

Hirvonen's only too well aware of the challenge he faces on three of the next seven rallies. But, he's no slouch on asphalt himself. Don't forget his first-ever WRC podium came in Spain. The one thing he probably can't count on is such strong support from Latvala; the younger of the Finns is still learning his trade on the black stuff.

With all this talk of asphalt and potential Loeb domination, it's almost easy to forget that the championship's next port of call is a local one for Hirvonen. It's Jyvaskyla: his hometown. Oh yes, Rally Finland is upon us - and Loeb will be as worried as ever.

The Citroen driver scarcely got a look in on the turbo-quick Scandinavian stages 12 months ago, and - even in Gronholm's absence - it's going to be more of the same this time around.

Ford's Finns will simply fly at home. How long before they land, and the nature of that landing, only time will tell.

Certainly, both have the speed to win their home round of the WRC. Latvala led last year and Hirvonen harried Gronholm all the way for two and a bit days. If, over the next few weeks, Hirvonen feels himself worrying about the asphalt to come, he need only look out of his window at the trees and thousand lakes which surround him to take confidence.

The first half of this year's World Rally Championship has raised eyebrows. The second half looks set to be one of the most entertaining in years.