Pirelli motorsport marketing director, Peter Tyson meanwhile branded the Shoot-out a big success - and with Jon Williams and Mark Tapper already confirmed prior to this weekend as the African and Asia-Pacific Pirelli Star Driver winners - only one of the five slots remains to be filled for '09, namely with a driver from the Middle East.

"The event that took place in Freistadt was a genuine success in every way, and proof of the effectiveness of this method to find and support up-and-coming young rally stars," Tyson summed-up.

"All the drivers were extremely enthusiastic about the Pirelli Star Driver scheme, and I'm convinced that this is the way forward to uncover young talent – with of course one or two refinements in future, as is always the case after starting any brand new programme.

"Pirelli is extremely proud to have supported this initiative, which has met with a lot of praise from the national sporting federations, teams, drivers, and the media."