Portugal shakedown snippets…
Armin Schwarz had to rely on Ford ace Francois Delecour to help save his burning Skoda Octavia during the shakedown. A hot exhaust melted an oil pipe to the differential, causing the Czech machine to start burning. Delecour - who was running next on the road - offered his Focus's fire extinguisher to help Schwarz put out the flames. "It was a close one," said Schwarz. "If Francois had been another two minutes down the road, then the car could have gone completely. We really needed the two extinguishers to put it out." The Skoda has been repaired and will take the start as planned
Thomas Rådström has had a late call-up to Citroen's Saxo kit car squad in Portugal. The Swede, who bagged second overall on home turf last month for Mitsubishi, has been drafted in to replace Jesus Puras, who is ill. "It's strange," said Rådström. "On my last rally I was in the big red car, and now I'm in the smallest red car!" He and navigator Tina Thorner had completed the recce for Portugal anyway, as part of Citroen's bid to boost its crews' experience before a world assault in 2002.
Harri Rovanperä believes that he can follow up his Swedish Rally win with a similar success in Portugal. The Finn, who scored his debut success in Sweden last month, is confident that if his 206 proves reliable, he stands a chance of a repeat performance. "I need to feel comfortable with the car," he said, "but if that is the case then why not? I've done well here before." But he added: "It's going to be hard in these conditions. The last time I used mud tyres was in Indonesia 1997, and I was driving a two-wheel drive Ibiza kit car then!"
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