[Speaking in the mid-day service] "That was not easy as there were some sections which were very slippery compared to others. The changes we made to the car last night have helped a lot and the car feels more comfortable today but I still think there is some work to be done. We are still getting used to the car and this takes time. I think the pacenotes are slow in places so we just haven't got the rhythm yet, no major problems though."


Petter Solberg [Subaru WRT]:

"Today has not been so bad for us and we are still in sixth position overall. We pushed hard today in tricky conditions that were very demanding. The top four stage times are good, but we had some difficulties this afternoon so we will make some changes before day three. There is more to come so I hope we can find more time tomorrow."

[Speaking in the mid-day service] "It's going ok today, I am quite happy. We lost some time yesterday in the first stage, but this morning we have had some good runs and no problems, and we keep pushing so we will see. We're all doing what we can with the current car, and it's not going badly at the moment. Loeb and Sordo are fast, but in the last stage [SS5] we weren't so far per kilometre off Mikko. The Pirellis are predictable and we have had no problems with them, you just have to be so so careful. If you get a puncture you just have no chance."


Gigi Galli [Stobart VK M-Sport Ford WRT]:

"We have learnt a lot today and I really love this car. I feel like I'm starting to get used to it and the feeling is now more comfortable. We improved a lot on the second pass today but there are still damp patches on the road meaning things are still a bit slippery. We lost some time with the power steering problem but we have also got more used to the tyres and they are feeling better now. There are so many spectators which makes it exciting but I'm still concentrating on getting to the finish."

[Speaking in the mid-day service] "The first stage was tricky because there were some dry corners and some damp ones which made parts slippery and harder to find a good rhythm. It has been a good morning but I just have to change a couple of notes for the second pass this afternoon. There has been no problems with the car I am just getting more comfortable with it which helps with my confidence."


Jari-Matti Latvala [BP Ford Abu Dhabi WRT]:

"I couldn't find any confidence driving with the new tyres. The car was fine and I only needed to look in the mirror to find the problem – me! The car was too soft and rolling a little so I stiffened the settings for this afternoon to make it more stable. That made a big difference. My driving was better but I'm still not at the pace I want to be. I'm driving sideways too much and that's where I'm losing the time. I need to drive more smoothly tomorrow. I've made small changes to the differential set-up tonight to see if that helps."


Henning Solberg [Stobart VK M-Sport Ford WRT]:

"Today has been quite confident for me and I am learning more every corner. I have never been a tarmac expert but for sure the feeling is getting better. Everything went well today with no mistakes and this is the most important thing for me. I like the new Pirelli tyres and am starting to get used to the feeling on them. OK we still need to work hard to see what they can do but I don't want to do anything stupid so I'll just take things steady."

[Speaking in the mid-day service] "I was not happy with the first stage but things seemed to get better on the last one. We are just taking things step-by-step and seeing where we can end up. The tyres felt great in the dry but we are just trying to adapt to the damp sections. We are here to learn and finish the rally that is the most important thing."


Per-Gunnar Andersson [Suzuki WRT]:

"Today has been very good for us, as we've had no real problems and we've been able to set some good times. The encouraging thing is that we have already been able to go quicker than some cars and drivers with more experience. I'm going to stick to a steady pace, because the priority for me is to finish."


Matthew Wilson [Stobart VK M-Sport Ford WRT]:

"Today has gone well for us but the difference in temperature was very noticeable on the last stage tonight as it was getting colder and becoming slipperier and also darker so this obviously made conditions quite tricky. Apart from that there were no dramas but I am concentrating on being careful and not clipping anything on the side of the road. Now the tyres have no mousse, this is very important."