World Rally Championship: second position for Ford driver Mikko Hirvonen
In difficult conditions Mikko Hirvonen finished as the runner-up for ZF Sachs partner Ford at the Cyprus Rally. In his Ford Focus RS WRC fitted with a clutch from ZF Sachs Race Engineering Hirvonen was fighting among the front runners straight from the rally's start. On the second leg he passed the Spaniard Dani Sordo in front of him, and secured second place. The Cyprus Rally was the first rally featuring mixed stretches: after hardtop special stages on the first day, rough gravel stretches were on the agenda on the second and third leg.
Team-mate Jari-Matti Latvala finished out of the points after a driving mistake. The drivers of the private Ford teams, however, were successful: at the wheel of another Ford Focus RS WRC, the Briton Matthew Wilson clinched fifth place for the Stobart team. Federico Villagra from the Munchi's Team finished the rally in seventh place, Khalid Al Qassimi in the Focus of the factory team in eighth. All three rely on clutches from ZF Sachs Race Engineering as well.
Results, Cyprus Rally (CY), 3rd round of the World Rally Championship, 13 March - 15 March 2009:
1. S. Loeb/D. Elena, Citro将ウn, 4h50m34.7s
2. M. Hirvonen/J. Lehtinen, Ford, + 27.2s , ZF Sachs
3. P. Solberg/P. Mills, Citro将ウn, + 1m49.4s
4. D. Sordo/M. Marti, Citro将ウn, + 2m26.3s
5. M. Wilson/S. Martin, Ford, + 6m41.0s , ZF Sachs
6. C. Rautenbach/D. Barritt, Citro将ウn, +11m11.9s
7. F. Villagra/J. Perez Companc, Ford, +13m18.5s, ZF Sachs
8. K. Al Qassimi/M. Orr, Ford, +13m44.1s, ZF Sachs
Drivers' championship:
1. S. Loeb, 30 points; 2. M. Hirvonen, 22; 3. D. Sordo, 17; 4. H. Solberg, 10; 5. P. Solberg, 9; 6. M. Wilson, 8; 7. J. Latvala, 6; 8. C. Atkinson, 4; 9. S. Ogier and C. Rautenbach, 3.
Manufacturers' championship:
1. Citro将ウn, 48 points; 2. Ford, 32; 3. Stobart-Ford, 22; 4. Citro将ウn Junior Team, 11.