Mikko Hirvonen [BP Ford Abu Dhabi WRT]:
"My strategy paid off but I was nervous in the final stage. No split times were available for Sordo and I didn't know how hard he was pushing. I really needed these 10 points and this is a great result for my championship challenge. I need to keep my feet on the ground and continue trying to find more speed and more wins. I've learned how important it is to consistently score points on every rally but 10 is perfect. It was a tough rally but it's good to lead the series again."
"When I woke up it was raining but as we were in Jordan I hoped it wouldn't last so that the gravel wasn't dampened down. It stopped quickly, although I expected the driving line to be cleaner. It was really slippery, just like the ball-bearing surface in Australia, and hard to keep on the road."
Daniel Sordo [Citroen Total WRT]:
"I was fully aware this morning that the cards weren't stacked in our favour, but I tried to put that to the back of my mind and push as hard as possible. That paid because we were only 7.7 seconds off the lead after the first loop, and there was still everything to play for second time round. I did all I could to recover the lead [on the repeat loop] but it wasn't enough. Even so, I am pleased with our performance this weekend. We led on two occasions and I was delighted with my feeling at the wheel of the Citroën C4 WRC from start to finish. The rally was quite stressful but it was also beneficial for me. I'm sure the experience will come in useful on the forthcoming events."
Chris Atkinson [Subaru WRT]:
"We scored good points again and it’s good for us and good for the team as it keeps us close to the guys at the front of the championship. It was a difficult rally for us as almost from the start we were in the middle of nowhere with big gaps in front and behind of us. We managed to go along at our own pace, keeping it on the road. We had some hard times when things weren’t going well but we managed to get through. It was a bit of misfortune for others, but lucky for us. Sometimes that’s just how it goes. We’ve still got a lot of work to do and we want to be more competitive on pace and pushing for wins, but four podiums from five rallies is a very consistent start for us so with that I’m happy."
Henning Solberg [Stobart VK M-Sport Ford WRT]:
"I came to this rally aiming for a fifth place and am delighted to have got fourth; I am really happy with this finish. I knew it was going to be a tough rally and I had to use my head. It would have been easy to push hard from the start and make a mistake but I needed to get to the finish without doing anything wrong. This plan has worked because now I have more points and everything feels good with the car and especially with the next rally quite close, it will help a lot."
Matthew Wilson [Stobart VK M-Sport Ford WRT]:
"We were slightly disappointed this morning when the puncture cost us a lot of time but in the end we remained focused and now we have finished fifth which I am really happy with on this new and difficult event. My fitness has played a key part and has helped a lot with my concentration and performance on the stages. This was a hard rally but this finish is now our best result so far this year."
Federico Villagra [Munchi’s Ford WRT]:
"I enjoyed this rally a lot and for myself and Jorge to score points on the last three events is a fantastic achievement. We found the first day very difficult because it was a new rally and the stages were tricky and it would be easy to make a mistake. Then on Saturday we made some changes to the differential and things felt much better, I had an improved feeling with the car and my times got faster from there. The high temperatures made it more difficult and we really had to concentrate hard on the very long last stage of the rally today. But now I’m feeling good and have got more confidence to go to Sardinia which is also the first event I drove for Munchi’s last year."
