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Acropolis : Peugeot Sport - Finish [06/06/04]
Harri seals Peugeot podium
A great performance by Rovanpera
Today's action consisted of six hot and rough stages, with a service halt
in Lamia at midday. Harri started the day with the firm intention of
consolidating his podium position, and he was determined not to take
any unnecessary risks over the tricky terrain. His 307 WRC was entirely
reliable throughout the day, requiring only routine maintenance at service.
He lost time on the opening leg after hitting a couple of rocks and
knocking the steering out of line, and he also suffered a bad cut in his
tyre tread yesterday. Apart from that, Harri's rally was free of drama.
Harri said: "I'm pleased with this result, although I've not been entirely
confident with the car throughout the three days of the event. I didn't have a
good feeling with the suspension over the bumps yesterday, and this
morning was a little bit the same. The most important thing though is that
the car is both reliable and fast, and we clearly have the pace to run at
the front. I think we're in very good shape for the next rally in Turkey
now, which I was leading last year, and I'm hoping for an even better
result than the one here in Greece..."
Harri's team mate Marcus Gronholm took the rally lead on the opening
leg, but he was unfortunately forced to retire yesterday after damaging
his suspension against a rock.
Under the trial of the new super rally system, Marcus was able to drive
through today's stages without being eligible to score points. However,
he completed some useful testing work in preparation for the Rally of
Turkey.
Young Swede Daniel Carlsson, backed by Peugeot Sport, clinched a fine
fifth place in his 206 WRC run by Bozian Racing, with the similar car of
Manfred Stohl finishing in a points-scoring sixth.
Peugeot Sport team principal Corrado Provera commented: "Harri and
Risto have driven one of their best rallies since they started with Peugeot.
They have finished third after an excellent battle and brought us six
points. The car had no problems either with performance or reliability. It's
a pity that Marcus was not able to finish, but from Turkey onwards we
will be trying to score bigger points on each rally!"
The World Rally Championship resumes in three weeks time with the
Rally of Turkey, based in Kemer from June 25-27. Conditions will be
similar to those of Greece, with rough roads and hot temperatures, so
the Peugeot team is aiming to capitalise on the lessons learned so far.
Press release
Peugeot Spor
Final results (22 stages/ 377 km)
1. Petter Solberg, Subaru, 4 h 39´ 06,2"
2. Sebastien Loeb, Citroen, + 00´18,4"
3. Harri Rovanperä, Peugeot 307, + 00´28,3"
4. Francois Duval, Ford, + 02´19,4”
5. Daniel Carlsson, Peugeot 206, + 06´50,1"
6. Manfred Stohl, Peugeot 206, + 10´01,6"
7. Janne Tuohino, Ford, + 11´12,5"
8. Aris Vovos, Ford, + 14´ 07,0"
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