Mexico : SS 4 - 22.41 km
After making a stop in Leon for servicing the cars, the crews are back in action for the second loop of stages. The drivers will complete the same three timed events as this morning and will then compete in the Nextel Super Special to conclude Leg 1.
The first timed event on this afternoon`s schedule is Ibarrilla. The major news of this stage is the retirement of Marcus Gronholm. The championship leader went off the road, around 9 km from the start. The Focus was damaged and couldn`t be moved out of a ditch.
While Gronholm will be very disappointed, everything is going well for his Ford teammate Mikko Hirvonen. The young Finn beat Gronholm in every stage this morning and finished second once again in SS4, just 1”1 behind race leader Petter Solberg. Hirvonen is also second in the race standings, with a deficit of 11”5 over Solberg.

Sebastien Loeb is keeping up with the leading pack, the Kronos driver setting the third best time in SS4. With his performance and the retirement of his main rival Gronholm, Loeb moves up to third position in the overall results.

Henning Solberg gets another solid result in this timed event, the Norwegian clinching the fourth quickest time, five seconds flat faster than Dani Sordo at the wheel of his Xsara WRC.

Chris Atkinson and Manfred Stohl are sixth and seventh respectively, followed by Matthew Wilson (8th), Luis Perez-Companc (9th) and Gareth MacHale (10th).

Tags: rally,