Ligato conquers Rally Mexico.

Argentina had good reason to be proud of itself yesterday [Sunday] as its regular FIA Production Car World Rally Championship contender Marcos Ligato overhauled the opposition and emerged victorious in the 2003 Corona Rally Mexico in his Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution.

Poland's Janusz Kulig ultimately finished second with Costa Rica's Andres Montalto third in the leading Subaru.

The final leg of Corona Rally Mexico took the crews north-east of Leon and included five special stages totalling 111.94 kilometres over a total distance of 261.46 kilometres. Weather conditions once again took their toll as temperatures rose yet higher and from the original 45 starters, just 15 completed the three-day 1,020.76 kilometre route.

Marcos Ligato led the rally from stage seven in the opening leg and romped back to Leon yesterday afternoon with more than a one minute advantage over his nearest rival. The amiable Argentinean had a trouble-free run throughout the rally and set a total of eight fastest times out of the event's 22 gravel stages.

"I'm very happy with the result," said Ligato. "The crew and the team did such a great job with the car, which is part of the reason for success. This is a great rally, especially the route and the facilities. The stages are great and there is so much variety - it could easily be part of the World Championship. The organisation has proved that they know what they're doing."

Former Peruvian Rally Champion Ramon Ferreyros arrived back in Leon in second position, 28 seconds adrift of Ligato, however final scrutineering revealed his Lancer Evolution VII to be fitted with a fly-wheel for an Evolution VI. The Peruvian was ultimately excluded and a strong three-day battle proved fruitless.

Janusz Kulig therefore inherited second position in another Lancer Evolution. He kept up the pressure throughout the entire rally, setting five fastest stage times. His strategy was simple. "Maximum attack!" explained the Pole.

"My tyres have been a problem as the compound was too soft for the conditions and I had a small accident on one of the stages and damaged the bodywork a little bit. However, I?ve really enjoyed this event and Mexico is a great place to have a rally. Now we have only one more stage to complete and it's a very long one... in the bar tonight!"

Costa Rica's Andres Montalto brought his Impreza home as the lead Subaru in third position and was overjoyed. "We just wanted to finish the rally," he explained. "Our final position was the icing on the cake!"

Upholding Mexican honours, Alejandro Pimental finished fourth in another Lancer Evolution. He suffered from overheating and engine mapping problems during the event but drove a measured rally and reaped the rewards. "If Corona Rally Mexico was a World Rally Championship event I would love to come back and compete - but in a more powerful car," he said.

The main casualty of the final leg was Subaru Canada Rally Team driver Pat Richard who, despite hanging onto fourth place since stage nine, suffered transmission problems in stage 20 and was forced to retire. Richard had overcome a catalogue of problems during the second leg so his eventual retirement was all the more frustrating.

Corona Rally Mexico is vying for inclusion in the FIA World Rally Championship and has received high praise from the attending FIA personnel.

President of the Rallies Commission, Shekhar Mehta commented: "The rally has lovely stages, great backdrops and the ceremonial start was so different and nice. You can see the organisation has upped its game from last year and is obviously serious in its candidature.

"All the stages had a lot of marshals and although there were few spectators, when they start to arrive in the future, the safety is already in place. I'm going home with a very positive reaction to the event," he concluded.

Corona Rally Mexico has dreams of World Rally Championship status in 2004 and if the comments from the competing crews are anything to go by, so do many drivers.

Corona Rally Mexico - after leg 3 - Top 10:

1. Marcos Ligato Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 4hr 34min 19.9sec
2. Janusz Kulig Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 4hr 35min 24.0sec
3. Andreas Montalto Subaru Impreza 4hr 59min 50.2sec
4. Alejandro Pimentel Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 5hr 18min 10.4sec
5. P. Doninelli Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 5hr 31min 23.5sec
6. O. Reyna VW Beetle 5hr 58min 10.7sec
7. W. Gugelmann Subaru Impreza 6hr 07min 23.8sec
8. A. Pedroza Renault Clio 6hr 12min 50.7sec
9. C. Medina VW Golf 6hr 24min 33.6sec
10. A. Orozco VW Golf 6hr 25min 20.4sec