Makinen heads championship table

However, championship rival Didier Auriol is just six points behind, so as the teams head to Australia at the end of the month, the Toyota driver will be looking to close the gap on the Finn.

Auriol's Toyota team-mate Carlos Sainz is currently joint third in the points with Subaru's Juha Kankkunen, so a good performance from the Spaniard in Australia could help secure third place in the championship.

Meanwhile, British driver Richard Burns also has a chance to clinch third. He is currently on 35 points, and a solid run at the next event could see him overtake both Sainz and his team-mate Kankkunen.

Position	Driver	Team	Points
1	T Makinen	Mitsubishi Lancer	58
2	D Auriol	Toyota Corolla WRC	52
3	C Sainz	Toyota Corolla WRC	38
4	J Kankkunen	Subaru Impreza WRC	38
5	R Burns	Subaru Impreza WRC	35
6	C McRae	Ford Focus WRC	23
7	P Bugalski	Citroen Xsara Kit-Car	20
8	F Loix	Mitsubishi Carisma GT	9
9	T Gardemeister	Seat Cordoba WRC	6
10	J Puras	Citroen Xsara Kit-Car	6
11	G Panizzi	Peugeot 2O6 WRC	6
12	T Radstrom	Ford Focus WRC	5
13	H Rovanpera	Seat Cordoba WRC	5
14	F Delecour	Peugeot 2O6 WRC	3
15	I Duncan	Toyota	3
16	M Gronholm	Peugeot 2O6 WRC	3
17	B Thiry	Subaru	3
18	P Solberg	Ford	2
19	M Markko	Ford	2
20	P Bourne	Subaru	2
21	P Solberg	Ford	2
22	A Aghini	Toyota Corolla WRC	2
23	L Kirkos	Ford Escort WRC	1
24	P Liatti	Seat Cordoba WRC	1

Constructors' standings

Position	Team	Points
1	Toyota	103
2	Subaru	79
3	Mitsubishi	74
4	Ford	36
5	SEAT	18
6	Peugeot	9
7	Skoda	3

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Makinen heads championship table

With just two rounds in Australia and Great Britiain left in the World Rally Championship, Mitsubishi driver Tommi Makinen looks on target to achieve his fourth consecutive drivers' title.

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