SS12: Inohori 2 Delecour on pace
Francois Delecour's Ford Focus WRC has recovered from its earlier power steering problems, allowing the Frenchman to notch up his fourth stage win on the Acropolis Rally. Delecour's time of 18m13.2s was just two tenths of quicker than second-placed Carlos Sainz over the 23km Inohori stage
Delecour's time was around 14 seconds quicker than the time set by Subaru's Markko Martin on the first trip through the stage on Friday. Of more significance, however, is the fact that Sainz has reduced the gap between himself and team mate Colin McRae to nine seconds in the battle for the lead.
Another driver to rediscover some pace is Petter Solberg in the Subaru Impreza. The Norwegian was third fastest through Inohori ahead his team mate Richard Burns. The Englishman's fourth place on the stage means that he is just 11 seconds off the lead going into the final stage of the day.
Harri Rovanpera's Peugeot was half a second quicker than rally leader Colin McRae, allowing the Finn to take fifth place on Inohori. Behind McRae's Ford Focus, were the two Mitsubishis; Freddy Loix's Carisma leading team mate Tommi Makinen's Lancer. However Loix will pick up 1m50s in penalties after leaving service 11 minutes late. The Belgian required extensive repairs on his Carisma, including changing the radiator, intercooler, wastegate and sumpguard.
Philippe Bugalski took ninth place, with Alister McRae recovering slightly after his Hyundai Accent's driveshaft broke on SS9, to take 10th.
Gilles Panizzi in the Grifone-run Peugeot has encountered problems between SS12 and SS13. The Frenchman's 206 stopped with fuel pump problems and he's trying to fix the car at the moment. We'll keep you updated.
For SS12 results click here.
For full live timings table click here.
For full entry list click here.
For the itinerary click here.
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