Higgins, who was competing this weekend with a broken collar bone after an accident in the UK prior to coming to Japan, was disappointed not to have finished one spot higher, as he is now no longer in with a shot of taking the PWRC title.

"I like the Japanese stages but not at all the traffic jams on the road sections. The 50 second road penalty on Friday has prevented us from having a chance to win the P-WRC title," he stated.

"It is hard but such things happen in rallies. I was OK yesterday but when the adrenaline drops down it [my shoulder] hurts like hell. Today was really hard."

Patrik Flodin and Juho Hanninen rounded out the points' scorers in seventh and eighth, the latter having recovered to scoop the final drivers' point after losing time in SS7 and having to rejoin on day 2 under the SupeRally.

"It was a very difficult rally," noted Juho. "Friday I went off the road. We did not make such good times but it was a good experience."

In total 16 of the 17 PWRC runners were classified at the finish, with Toshi Arai eleventh after being dogged by punctures. It was his sixth and final PWRC outing of the season and he now faces an anxious wait to see if he has done enough to take his second Production crown.

"It's the rally of punctures for us. We had to slow down twice and to change the wheel three times. It was like a survival course. It felt like in Greece. Now my P-WRC programme is over and we have to wait until the end of the season to see if we make it [and secure the title]," he summed-up.