Present:
1st - Marcus Grönholm - BP Ford World Rally Team
1st - Timo Rautiainen -BP Ford World Rally Team
2nd - Mikko Hirvonen - BP Ford World Rally Team
2nd - Jarmo Lehtinen - BP Ford World Rally Team
3rd - Henning Solberg - OMV Team Peugeot Norway
3rd - Cato Menkerud - OMV Team Peugeot Norway
Representative of the winning manufacturer, BP-Ford World Rally Team, Malcolm Wilson

Welcome to the post-event FIA press conference.

Q:
Marcus, congratulations on another victory. In order to stand a chance of winning the Championship at all this year, you had to win really. You’ve done that, so does it bring your chances of a third World Championship any closer? Are you beginning to think now that maybe, just maybe, it’s possible? Did you come under any pressure at all throughout the three days? Petter Solberg seemed to be going quickly yesterday afternoon before he went off.

MG:
Okay, there is a possibility on paper and maybe we can do it. We need to be 100 per cent finishing and doing the best we can, then it also depends when Seb is coming back. I’m not thinking about that, more important is to win the Manufacturers Championship. It is possible, but not easy. I cannot say anything more, we will see. Okay, yesterday, Petter was pushing in the muddy conditions and I didn’t want to take any risk. Sometimes he was beating me by nine or ten seconds, okay. So, it was not easy, then when he went off it was much easier for me.

Q:
Timo, congratulations. What is your perspective on the Championship battle? Do you believe that Marcus can do it? Obviously a major talking point of this rally was the weather; just how bad were the conditions? Is this some of the worst weather you’ve seen? How complicated was the tyre choice? Did you worry at any point that you might throw your lead away?

TR:
Yes, like Marcus says it is possible and I believe we can finish in the right positions. We need to win and take two second positions or something and Sébastien needs to feel very comfy at home, recover there and have a nice holiday! Like Marcus, I’m not thinking about this. Instead we are taking care of the Manufacturer points. Most stages were okay, driveable and nice stages. When it’s raining some of the stages change their nature completely, when it’s like this I don’t want to be in the car. I had to do this on two stages on Friday and I did not enjoy it. The tyre choice was not so difficult; we started in full rain, so we took the softest compound. We did the perfect tyre choice every time. BF Goodrich offered us the best solution for every stage, so we have no complaints.

Q:
Mikko, congratulations on another second place; good for you and very good for Ford. This cannot have been an easy rally for you as Henning Solberg was never far away. How pleased are you with your performance? There were a number of stages when you were right on the pace of Marcus; would you say that this was one of your strongest rallies this year, under the difficult circumstances?

MH:
I’m really pleased. Like you said, Henning pushed hard all the time and Petter wasn’t too far – we tried to catch him as well. That wasn’t the easiest in these conditions. The car was great and no mistakes from me; the perfect weekend. Maybe not the strongest one, but it was good. In Cyprus we didn’t have the pace, but I was confident when we got the confidence back we would be back with Marcus and we were there on this event.

Q:
Jarmo, congratulations. A very tough rally, where you had to fight all the way. There was obviously the battle with Henning Solberg that we’ve already mentioned but did you think you might be able to catch Petter Solberg, who was in front of you for the first two days? With such a tight battle for the Manufacturers’ Championship, how much pressure were you and Mikko under?

JL:
It would have been possible if the weather stayed like it was in the morning on the second loop, but when Petter attacked in the rain we decided to back off, follow the splits and take third place. There was some pressure of course; we need to secure as good points as possible. It’s been a good part of the job and I think we’ve done a good job.

Q:
Malcolm, congratulations on the first one-two since Mexico 2004, on what was probably the most crucial rally of the year in terms of the Manufacturers’ Championship. Before the start of the rally, when the weather was so bad it was threatening to blow down your Happy Hour (press reception), how confident did you feel of a result like this? Was this a particularly nerve-wracking rally for you? How did you feel on the final day, knowing you could only lose first and second? How confident does this make you for the Manufacturers’ title?

MW:
We said all along we could challenge for victory on every rally, we’ve seen Mikko supporting Marcus, and we’ve seen that again here. The full credit goes to the drivers to get a one-two in these conditions. We always had the right tyres, perfect result. We’d advised all of the guys after we heard about Seb’s situation, we were still behind. If we did get ahead, all we could do was throw it away. Now we have to be more careful, these drivers are more than capable, we just have to make sure we give them the car to do it. I think it wasn’t so bad, and in fairness, it’s different to being in a big battle with Sébastien, as has been the case so many times. The rally has been under control from Marcus and Mikko, so it wasn’t anything as difficult as rallies before. As I said, it’s in our hands. We can only throw it away. Believe me, I’ve been trying to get the number one for 10 years – everybody in M-Sport will be giving 100 per cent to make sure we get the job done.

Q:
Henning, congratulations on your first podium in the FIA World Rally Championship, a magnificent achievement. How does it feel to finally be here? You had a fantastic battle with Mikko Hirvonen, which we spoke about earlier, how hard did you push him? Was there a chance of getting past him? You also had a good fight with your brother – what did that feel like?

HS:
I think it’s the first time we have cried in the car, two tough guys. He started crying, so I had to join him. It’s not easy being the big brother to Petter, but I’m catching him step by step. I always try to fight, but the two last stages last night I tried to, it was my choice to take the wrong tyres. We went a lot of seconds behind. You can never give up. On the next last stage a brake pipe broke in the car. I have been a mechanic since I was six years old, so I worked hard and fixed it. We weren’t very fast, but we could make it and I’m very happy with third place. It feels very good to be close to Petter. He has all the experience on all these rallies and it feels good to be closer to the top. It’s not easy, you have to work hard.

Q:
Cato, was this one of the most difficult rallies you have done? The weather seemed to be changing all the time. Did you have good information on which to base your tyre choices, or did you have some nasty moments as well?

CM:
For me, it was the most difficult rally ever; very hard. The tyre choice was quite easy as it was mud all over – not so bad. We had some moments when there was water around the corner. It went well.

Q:
As we mentioned earlier Marcus, this rally was characterised by bad weather. What did you think of the three stage cancellations on the first day? Was it the right decision not to run the stages? Were you worried about the rally going down to just half points and not giving you the chance to fight for the Championship? Normally we’ve seen you and Sébastien in a very tight battle – what was it like not having him there? Did you feel under less pressure than usual or not? Now we head to Australia – a very different rally and one that you like – how confident are you feeling? What are your chances of another win there?

MG:
A little bit worried (about half points), yes. The first day when we couldn’t do the first stage, then the second – it was a little like that. But then the weather changed and we could do all the stages. It was the right decision (to cancel them). The first one was so muddy and there was no visibility – it was a good thing to cancel. Petter was speeding up. Okay, maybe the last few seconds, I didn’t have to push for them – but still it was not an easy rally. I think Rally Australia will be okay. I like that rally quite a lot. The only thing is that I have to be first on the road – that can be a little problem, but I hope not a lot.

Q:
Can you think of any ways in which you could improve the event?

TR:
The weather. The stages are nice and fluent and I like the route itself. The weather we cannot change, but some of those stages change and become dangerous – they’re not nice at all to drive on like that.

Q:
You’ve also overtaken Dani Sordo now to claim third in the Drivers’ Championship; how confident do you feel of being able to hold onto that for the rest of the year? What do you think of Rally Australia, coming up next? Will you be driving to take a top result for yourself, or maximum Manufacturer points for the team?

MH:
From my point of view I’m quite confident, there are still three races to go. We have to do everything properly and it’s not finished yet. The priority is the Manufacturers’ Championship. We’ve passed Kronos Citroën, so there is a little room to breathe. For Rally Australia; both. It’s a rally I really enjoy. The nature of the stages are the ones I enjoy the most – you really have to be flat out and see how it goes.
Q:
You’re getting more and more accustomed to standing on the podium; do you feel that the first victory is not far away now? What do you think it will take?

JL:
Yes. Rallies like this take a little bit of luck. Yesterday and Friday when the conditions were okay and we pushed a little bit, we weren’t so far from Marcus’s pace. It’s not so far away, I think.

Q:
You are in the fortunate position of being one of the few drivers who has a guaranteed budget and a guaranteed place in the FIA World Rally Championship next season. Tell us about your sponsorship deal and what plans you have for 2007. When do you think that your programme might be finalised?

HS:
I will drive a full season for sure. It’s a two-year deal in a very good car.

Q:
Your current team, OMV Peugeot Norway, has said that its ambition is to overtake Subaru for third in the Manufacturers’ Championship. You’ve come a little bit closer to that objective here; how realistic do you think it is? What is the strategy now for the rest of the season?

CM:
We can fight for that position, but of course it’s difficult. We will try. We do the last three rallies. I hope we can fight for the podium.

HS:
We’re also ahead of Petter (Solberg) in the Championship – that’s very important. It will be a good Christmas!

Q:
Final word with you Malcolm. Here you are, with two cars on the podium, leading the Manufacturers’ Championship. It must make you very proud, when less than two years ago there were doubts as to whether or not Ford would even be here. On the strength of this performance, how confident are you of Marcus’ chances of sneaking the Drivers’ title this year – or is that next year’s project?

MW:
I think most of it’s been covered to be honest. It all depends on Sébastien’s recovery. As I said, we can challenge for victory on all the events, but a little bit will be out of our hands if he comes back. One fifth place and the title is his. If he doesn’t come back, there’s every chance but that puts more pressure on the team. We would need one more win and two seconds if he doesn’t come back. It’s very difficult to answer until we know whether Sébastien is coming back.

FIA JUNIOR WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP

1st - Urmo Aava
1st - Kuldar Sikk

Q:
Urmo, an action-packed final day, how have you won?

UA:
We started the day in second. Unfortunately, we had two punctures. The biggest problem was the puncture on the second day. What happened to P-G (Andersson) was tough. I think I’m not the right person to comment on what happened to P-G, something technical.
 
Q:
When you came here, did you expect to be in a position to fight?

UA:
Yes, every driver comes to win. We were driving good. Yes, we were thinking about winning and being in the top position.

Q:
Does this win make up for the disappointment in Corsica?

UA:
That’s a really difficult question to answer. I don’t like to think like that. It would be perfect if the fastest guy wins, but the life is different. It’s hard to answer.

Q:
How was the JWRC car in these slippery conditions; how difficult was it to find traction?

KS:
I think the Turkish Rally this year has been one of the toughest rallies I’ve ever done on the stages and yes, the traction was difficult, sometimes it was a little boring going up the hill – there was wheel spin but we were not going anywhere.

Q:
What about the Championship now?

UA:
It makes the Championship quite interesting. We can see who is the winner in GB. I think I’m leading. There can be only one plan – to be fastest in GB. For sure, it’s not going to be easy. We drive almost at winter time. I think we find ice there and on gravel tyres, that’s not funny.

Q:
And Kuldar, what do you think?

KS:
I am looking forward to it. It’s interesting to see the Championship so tight. We will see what happens in GB.