Drivers criticise Rally Finland changes

This year's route for one of the world's most famous rallies includes five new stages, which the drivers feel are not in keeping with the fast and flowing nature on which Rally Finland's fearsome reputation has been built.

One of the main casualties of the changes, which have been introduced to avoid double usage and to try and reduce the average speeds, is the Ouninpohja test - a stage so good that Colin McRae named his race horse after it.

This year, Ouninpohja has been chopped in half and the crews will drive the road in the opposite direction.

"I'm quite sorry about Ouninpohja," said Hirvonen. "After last year, when I was fighting so close with Marcus [Gronholm], I feel reasonably confident I could have beaten everybody in that stage.

"The rest of the roads are a bit mixed. There are some sections which are narrow and not really what you would expect from Rally Finland."

Suzuki's Per-Gunnar Andersson agreed with Hirvonen, adding: "Some of these roads are not classic Finland. You come here for big jumps and wide roads, we don't have so much of either now. Don't get me wrong, the new roads are still a very big challenge, but it's not the same."

Reigning world champion Sebastien Loeb, still chasing his first Finland win, wasn't concerned about the changes.

"It's a rally and it's worth 10 points, that's the same," he said. "Ouninpohja has been the most difficult stage for me for the last two years so I'm not so sorry to see it go. There are still some technical places and the narrow roads are still going to be very interesting."