SS14: Delecour stakes claim to final podium spot

In the chase for overall victory, Tommi Makinen turned things down a notch, finishing 17.6s off the pace, but still only 2.2s slower than his nearest challenger Carlos Sainz. With just 16.55kms of competitive stage left before the Monte Carlo finish, the Finn looks odds-on for his third straight triumph in the event.

Delecour was a massive 19.6s ahead of the Schwarz's Octavia, which could only finish the stage sixth fastest. The German argues that as soon as conditions begin to dry a little, the less powerful Skoda loses touch with the big boys, and with the blast to and from the snowy Col de Turini dried considerably by the 'warmth' of the day, he appears to have been proved right.

With only one stage to go, it will take a monster effort from Schwarz and his Czech machine and more bad luck for Frenchman Delecour to even close the gap, let alone reverse the position.

Second fastest on SS14 was Toni Gardemeister's Grifone-run Peugeot 206WRC. The Finn has no dedicated ice-note crews, but the familiarity from a second run through the stage allowed him to excel.

Freddy Loix was fifth, just edging team mate Makinen, with Alister McRae's Hyundai seventh, just one place out of the drivers' points.

Should the places remain unchanged over the final stage, Mitsubishi will leave Monaco with 13 makes' title points, with Ford on six, Skoda on five and Hyundai on two. Neither Gardemeister, nor Delecour were registered for manufacturer points.


1 Francois Delecour (Ford), 26m24.6s
2 Toni Gardemeister (Peugeot), 26m28.4s
3 Carlos Sainz (Ford), 26m40.0s
4 Freddy Loix (Mitsubishi), 26m40.4s
5 Tommi Makinen (Mitsubishi), 26m42.2s
6 Armin Schwarz (Skoda), 26m44.2s


1 Tommi Makinen (Mitsubishi), 4h23m48.1s
2 Carlos Sainz (Ford), 4h24m55.6s
3 Francois Delecour (Ford), 4h25m54.1s
4 Armin Schwarz (Skoda), 4h26m12.3s
5 Toni Gardemeister (Peugeot), 4h29m41.3s
6 Freddy Loix (Mitsubishi), 4h29m47.1s
7 Alister McRae (Hyundai), 4h32m31.2s
8 Bruno Thiry (Skoda), 4h37m18.6s
9 Olivier Gillet (Mitsubishi - GpN), 4h39m15.5s
10 Manfred Stohl (Mitsubishi - GpN), 4h40m57.8s