Gronholm, Atkinson top shakedown

Gronholm and Atkinson completed the 4.3km La Crucitta di Sant'Antonio di Gallura shakedown stage with identical times of 2:57.5 seconds.

The pair were just fractionally quicker than Sebastien Loeb, looking to score his fifth consecutive victory this weekend and add to his 21-point championship lead as the season head towards its halfway point.

Hening Solberg was an impressive fourth quickest in his OMV Peugeot, almost a second behind the Frenchman, but ahead of his brother Petter in the works Subaru Impreza.

The second OMV Peugeot runner of Manfred Stohl, who was struck down with food poisoning in the same event last year, was sixth fastest.

The rally proper begins tomorrow with nearly 130 kilometres of stages.

Pos Driver           Make         Time
 1. Marcus Gronholm  Ford         2:57.5
 =. Chris Atkinson   Subaru       2:57.5
 3. Sebastien Loeb   Citroen      2:57.8
 4. Hening Solberg   Peugeot      2:58.6
 5. Petter Solberg   Subaru       3:00.0
 6. Manfred Stohl    Peugeot      3:00.3
 7. Jussi Valimäki   Mitsubishi   3:00.9
 8. Daniel Sordo     Citroen      3:01.1
 9. Xevi Pons        Citroen      3:03.0
 =. Mikko Hirvonen   Ford         3:03.0