JYVASKYLA // Mikko Hirvonen drove "absolutely crazy" all weekend, but despite missing out on his dream of winning his home rally still had a smile on his face last night. The Finnish BP-Ford Abu Dhabi driver finished 9.9secs behind the winner Sebastien Loeb, having being given faint hope of a comeback when his spun on the second stage of the day. "I came here to win and am disappointed, but it was fun and I really enjoyed every moment. It was still a fantastic event," he said.
"The pace was absolutely crazy and I'm sure the feeling was that we were taking more risks than last year. "It was a fantastic rally and an amazing fight and it's unfortunate I didn't win in front of my home fans. I pushed right to the end but it wasn't enough. "The championship fight is not over, but of course all the rallies coming up are more important now. It's not over yet." Hirvonen holds on to his place at the top of the drivers' standings thanks to his second-place finish, though his lead over Loeb was cut to a single point. BP-Ford Abu Dhabi's advantage in the race for the manufacturer's title is also reduced to three points from nine.
Hirvonen trailed his French rival by 18.2secs at the start of yesterday's racing, when the final three stages were played out in the Finnish countryside. The title rivals posted exactly the same time in the first stage of the day, it was 11.8secs after the second and under 10secs at the end of the third and final outing. Although disappointed at his second-placed finish, Hirvonen felt he did nothing wrong other than stall at the start of a stage late on Saturday. Though he felt it had no impact on the final result. "I'm pleased with the speed we had but Seb was able to find few more seconds, and in the end that's all he needed to win," he said.
Finland is seen as the home of rallying, and claiming top spot on the podium here is a major coup for Loeb. It is very rare for a non-Finn to win the event, which is held over narrow gravel tracks which wind through forests and lakes. With ditches close to the road there is no margin for error. "It's been a very hard battle with Mikko all weekend with no chance to relax. He did a great job - I've had to fight for every second," said Loeb.
BP-Ford Abu Dhabi's second driver Jari-Matti Latvala finished 39th, with his accident on Friday ruining his hopes of victory. @Email:lthornhill@thenational.ae
