"The car has been great throughout all three days. This result is much better than what we had in Spain, where I retired after going off the road!"


Xavier Pons [Subaru WRT]:

“Looking at today it was not good for us, but for this weekend as a whole I am happy. The car has had no problems, which is important, and we have been able to concentrate on developing my style rather than making changes to the car which has helped me a great deal. Leg one was hard for us, and yesterday was good. This morning was tough again, but this afternoon was much better. Xavier and I are developing our style with the car, and a championship point for us is very positive.”


Henning Solberg [Stobart M-Sport Ford WRT]:

“The most important thing for me on this event was to finish and get the experience of both the stages and the asphalt surface. This was a new rally for me and I needed to finish; this is exactly what I have done. I have learnt so much in the last two weekends about driving on asphalt, my driving style and how my car should feel on these stages. Realistically this is the best job I could have done as I have completed all the stages and without any problems with the car. Both myself and Jari-Matti have scored more points here for the Stobart team and this is also important for me; being consistent and scoring points.”


Alessandro Bettega [Stobart M-Sport Ford WRT]:

“For me, this was one of my best events by far. We had so much expectation at the start and I just wanted to drive at a comfortable pace; I wasn't pushing hard. It was a shame about our problem on Friday but my times on all three days have really pleased me and to finish eleventh overall is a fantastic personal result for myself and Simone. There are many people that have helped make this opportunity possible for me and I must thank Malcolm Wilson, John Steele and everyone at M-Sport for making me feel so welcome within their team. I must also offer my thanks Walter at my team, TRT La Scuderia, for his support throughout this season and for this event.”


Mikko Hirvonen [BP Ford WRT]:

"It was an up-and-down weekend but in the end it all feels OK. I didn't think I would be able to carry on after the accident but we scored this point because of unbelievable work by our mechanics. I'm disappointed not to finish higher but relieved to score a point for the team. It was good for our confidence to continue and even on the last stage I made two corrections to my pace notes so they should be good for next year."


Manfred Stohl [OMV Kronos Citroen WRT]:

"That's no fun anymore. The whole team tries desperately but there is no progress. All that remains now is hope. Perhaps Japan will bring on the turnaround. Such a run just has to end sometime. We're sporadically achieving very good times. If we manage to keep that going for a whole rally we'll be up top again."


Nicolas Bernardi [Suzuki WRT]:

"We've been able to confirm a number of things we have discovered from our previous test programme and formulate some very clear ideas about the right direction for the future. During the afternoon we had a problem that affected the gearshift, but it did not stop me from enjoying these fantastic roads!"





Notable retirements:

Mikko Hirvonen [BP Ford WRT]: [retired from leg 1 in SS3 - went off the road – re-started on day 2 under the SupeRally]

"My pace notes were too fast for a left corner and I entered the bend too quickly. The car slid wide towards a concrete block and I hit it just where the suspension is attached to the bodyshell. I was lucky that the car slid rather than went straight on because there was a big drop off the edge. I knew we weren't going to get round and the concrete blocks aren't that soft around here.

"There was a small fire because fluid dripped onto the exhaust. The wheel was ripped off and bounced onto the roof of a house which was just below the level of the road. It bounced back onto the mountainside before rebounding onto the wall of the house and missing the kitchen window by about half a metre. It damaged a few tiles on the roof but the owner wasn't angry - he was quite excited by it all!"


Nicolas Bernardi [Suzuki WRT]: [retired from leg 1 after SS4 - no power – re-started on day 2 under the SupeRally]