BP Ford team leader, Marcus Gronholm reckons that he can still win the Rallye de France-Tour de Corse, despite having slipped behind
Sebastien Loeb this afternoon.
Gronholm set the standard this morning on the reduced opening loop, leading the way in both SS2 and SS3, after SS1 was cancelled.
In the afternoon though he could only manage three second fastest times and saw his slender 2.9 second lead whittled away. He eventually finished the first leg 4.8 seconds behind, but is convinced that he can still give Loeb a hard time on day 2.
"It was a great start for me," said the double world champion. "The dry weather made tyre choice easy and the road conditions were consistent, which is something we didn't have a week ago in Spain.
"Some sections were really bumpy on the old asphalt but others were smooth.
"There were a lot of sections which were new to us so my pace notes weren't perfect but that was the same for everyone.
"Loeb can't afford to relax [however even though he now leads] because I will keep pushing just as hard tomorrow.
"I knew I could match his times on asphalt in the dry and it's still perfectly possible to win this rally.
"I made a few small mistakes on the final stage, nothing major, but they cost me a few tenths of a second on each occasion. It's unfortunate that I can't start behind Loeb tomorrow to monitor his times but the gap is so small that we both have to drive flat out anyway."
BP Ford team boss, Malcolm Wilson meanwhile was impressed with the form of his number one driver: "It was a superb day for Marcus and I'm pleased he is still in the fight for the lead," he added.
