Recovered McRae takes lead
Colin McRae has taken the lead of the Rally of New Zealand after setting the fastest stage time on SS8. The Ford Focus driver lost time with a minor electrical glitch on the previous stage, but fought back strongly to go 1.6s clear of Tommi Makinen as the duo continue their tense battle
The Toyota duo are being as consistent (and inconspicuous) as ever, Carlos Sainz and Didier Auriol running 3rd and 4th ahead of Juha Kankkunen in the surviving Subaru and the incredible Toni Gardemeister on his Seat WRC debut. The Finn is already in the points, despite having never driven the car in wet conditions before.
Further back, his team mate Harri Rovanpera is now under pressure from the recovering Thomas Radstrom. The Ford driver rolled on SS3 but is back up to 9th.
Alister McRae still leads F2, while Gustavo Trelles is occupying his normal position at the head of the Group N pack.
Positions after SS8:
|
1 |
Colin McRae |
Ford Focus |
1h12m46.3s |
|
2 |
Tommi Makinen |
Mitsubishi Lancer |
1h12m47.9s |
|
3 |
Carlos Sainz |
Toyota Corolla |
1h13m25.5s |
|
4 |
Didier Auriol |
Toyota Corolla |
1h13m36.4s |
|
5 |
Juha Kankkunen |
Subaru Impreza |
1h14m10.6s |
|
6 |
Toni Gardemeister |
Seat Cordoba |
1h14m38.6s |
|
7 |
Possum Bourne |
Subaru Impreza |
1h15m36.8s |
|
8 |
Harri Rovanpera |
Seat Cordoba |
1h16m05.3s |
|
9 |
Thomas Radstrom |
Ford Focus |
1h16m07.7s |
|
10 |
Freddy Loix |
Mitsubishi Carisma |
1h16m56.7s |
|
|
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