Day 1am: Loeb dominates

Conditions have been hazardous with many drivers complaining the course is slippery and at times completely 'undriveable' after rain fell in the early stages.

The top three drivers though - Loeb, Duval and Sainz - seem to have come to grips with the variable conditions having opted for the softer Michelin tyres with a heavy cut pattern. These have been perfect for the early rain-hit stages but could cause problems on the later stages, which seem to be much drier.

"It was a good tyre choice and a good morning, despite a couple of errors," Duval said. "I missed a junction 5km from the end of the first stage, and the understeered off the road in a second-gear bend on the fourth stage. We didn't lose much time, but enough to cost us the lead."

The top three are already 44 seconds ahead of fourth-placed driver Petter Solberg, who is believed to be running a medium compound of Pirelli tyres in anticipation of drier stages later on.

"That was very difficult," Solberg admitted. "On every stage this morning, it was raining, and then it would stop - it was very on and off. Some were lucky and missed the rain, and others were not so lucky. It was very difficult to judge my speed in the conditions, and we've got a lot to do."

A gap of nearly half a minute separates Solberg from fifth-placed driver Cedric Robert in the Peugeot 307 WRC. Mitsubishi's Gilles Panizzi is three seconds off Robert in joint-sixth having opted for a similar choice of rubber as the top three. He has recorded the same time as Skoda's Armin Schwarz who joins the Frenchman in the sixth/seventh position.

Ford's Markko Martin is reportedly on the same tyres as his second-placed team-mate Duval, but the Belgian is thought to have a heavier cut pattern that has enabled him to stick with the Citroen drivers. Martin had two appalling runs in the first two stages dropping significant amounts of time to the leaders. The Estonian is gradually clawing his way back up the order, though, and now lies 1m16s behind Loeb to round out the top eight.

"The weather changed while we were waiting to start," he said. "The roads turned from dry to wet and it was hard to get confidence in the slippery conditions. The conditions were so changeable that it was impossible to make a tyre choice with confidence. Our tyres were too hard, and I will choose softer rubber for the afternoon stages."

Peugeot's Marcus Gronholm had barely started his rally before it came to a premature end. The Finn reportedly spun his 307 at the first corner on the opening stage of Leg 1 losing a wheel in the process and forcing him out of the rally.

All the drivers now have the opportunity to change tyres at the midday service break ready for the final four stages of the first leg.