Subaru boss David Richards has paid tribute to the 'tireless efforts' of the Banbury-based outfit's test team following the successful debut event with the all-new Impreza WRC2008 in Greece.
Subaru had originally been due to switch to the new car following the summer break, however, the decision was taken after Sardinia to move that date forward and while the move was risky, considering the Acropolis is the roughest round in the World Rally Championship, in the end it paid off, with
Petter Solberg securing the runners-up spot.
While
Chris Atkinson didn't finish in the sister car [see separate story], he re-started under the SupeRally on Sunday and before he went out again with suspension damage, the Aussie gave the Impreza WRC2008 its very first stage win in SS14. That was yet another encouraging pointer for Subaru as it looks to catapult itself back to the sport's forefront and challenge
Citroen and Ford for victories - and ultimately championship titles.
"Many thought our decision to come here was risky but I'd like to pay tribute to the tireless efforts of our test team whose efforts have been totally vindicated," said Richards.
"Today was a day of consolidation for Petter and Phil [Mills - his co-driver]. You can take nothing for granted on a rally like Acropolis until the very end, and Petter's task was to bring the car home unscathed on a very challenging day that saw his brother drop from the lead trio.
"Chris continued his development and testing of the car today and tried a few new things that proved successful, giving him a dominant stage win this morning.
"We are now onto the next stage of development for the WRC2008. We've completed the first event, and the many lessons we have learned here will stand us in good stead for the second half of the season."
