Leg 2 am: McRae leads Burns
Colin McRae benefited from the unfortunate punctures that struck team-mate Markko Martin to head the pack on the second leg of the Acropolis Rally. However, the Ford star is under pressure at the front from the rapid Peugeots, led by reigning world champion Richard Burns
Martin increased his lead with victory on SS8, but lost three minutes and any hope of his first WRC win with punctures on SS9. Burns moved into contention for his first win of the season by setting the best time through that stage, reducing McRae's advantage to just 20 seconds.
One the quickest men of the day has been Subaru's Petter Solberg, who was fastest through Bauxites (SS7) and has risen from 17th overnight to eighth and shouting distance of a championship point.
A lack of grunt cost Freddy Loix time on the uphill sections of the second leg's stages and the Hyundai has dropped out of a podium position to a still respectable fifth. Championship leader Marcus Gronholm, who has been steady rather than spectacular, now lies third. The third works 206 of Harri Rovanpera is sixth, just ahead of Thomas Radstrom's Citroen.
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