SS19, Ridge 1: Gronholm out front

McRae lies second overall and he continued to eat away at rival Richard Burns' overall lead on the Ridge 1 stage by reducing the gap to just 17.6s with only five stages remaining.

The Ford ace's efforts were all the more impressive as he is running second on the road on the final leg making the going extremely difficult. The British leaders are having to clear the New Zealand gravel for the rest of the field.

Francois Delecour, who spun and stalled his Ford Focus WRC on the previous stage, was back up to speed and took third place ahead of team mate Carlos Sainz in the third Focus.

The Spaniard hit a rock in the middle of the road, which had been pulled out by a driver ahead and was conmcerned that he may have suffered some suspension damage, but it didn't seem to harm his time any.

Gronholm's Peugeot team mates Harri Rovanpera and Didier Auriol finished fifth and sixth while struggling championship leader Tommi Makinen was seventh. Burns had to settle for ninth.

For SS19, Ridge 1 results, click here.

For full live timings table click here.

For full entry list click here.

For the itinerary click here.