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Ford pull off historic Italian job
publication date: May 26, 2009
 | | BP
Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team claimed a dominant one-two finish on Rally
d'Italia Sardegna with the Focus RS World Rally Car.
Jari-Matti Latvala and
Miikka Anttila led from start to finish to claim their second career win in the
FIA World Rally Championship.
The Finns reached the podium in the resort
of Porto Cervo with a 29.4sec advantage over team-mates Mikko Hirvonen and
Jarmo Lehtinen (above) after three days of tough competition on the Mediterranean
island.
Latvala's victory was his
first since his maiden WRC success in Sweden in February 2008 and it was BP
Ford Abu Dhabi's first one-two result since Rally Japan in November 2008.
Ford, second in the manufacturers' championship, closed the gap on the leader
after six of the 12 rounds with a maximum points haul. Hirvonen climbs to
second in the drivers' standings with Latvala moving up to sixth.
Competitors tackled 17
speed tests covering 347.12km over narrow, flowing and rough gravel tracks near
Olbia during three days of competition.
The championship enters
its second half next month when the action switches to Greece. The new
base of Loutraki hosts the gravel Acropolis Rally of Greece on 11 - 14 June. |
| Final positions Rally
d'Italia Sardegna | | 1. J-M Latvala/M
Anttila | Ford Focus RS | 4hr 00min
55.7sec | | 2. M Hirvonen/J
Lehtinen | Ford Focus
RS | 4hr 01min 25.1sec | 3. P Solberg/P Mills
|
Citroen Xsara
| 4hr 02min
53.3sec | | 4. S Loeb/D Elena | Citroen
C4
| 4hr
04min 39.4sec | | 5. E Novikov/D Moscatt | Citroen C4 | 4hr 06min 07.5sec | | 6. M Wilson/S Martin | Ford Focus RS | 4hr 08min 25.0sec | | 7. M Østberg/V Engan | Subaru Impreza | 4hr 14min
16.3sec | | 8. H Solberg/C
Menkerud | Ford Focus RS | 4hr 14min 16.9sec | 9. N Al-Attiyah/G Bernacchini
| Subaru Impreza | 4hr 20min
39.4sec | | 10 P Sandell/E Axelsson | Skoda
Fabia | 4hr
20min 40.9sec |
Drivers
| | Manufacturers | | 1. S Loeb | 55pts
| | 1. Citroen Total
| 90pts | | 2. M Hirvonen | 38pts
| | 2. BP Ford Abu Dhabi
| 61pts | | 3. D Sordo | 31pts | | 3. Stobart VK M-Sport Ford | 44pts | | 4. H Solberg | 21pts | | 4. Citroen Junior
| 18pts | 5. P Solberg
| 20pts
| | 5. Munchi's
Ford
| 12pts |
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