Greek A6 class one-two for Renault Clio.

The two Oreca-prepared Renault Clio Super 1600 cars finished in the top two places of the A6 class on the Acropolis Rally today [Sunday].

Simon Jean-Joseph and Jack Boy?re took their fourth consecutive win, while Brice Tirabassi dominated the Junior WRC, allowing him to pull into the lead in the Championship classification.

Race after race, the Renault Clio Super 1600 cars are accumulating victories, over the most varied terrain. After Great Britain, the Monte Carlo Rally and Turkey, Simon Jean-Joseph claimed a fourth consecutive A6 class win. Each time he takes part, the driver from Martinique is keen to prove that he is one of the top drivers of his generation.

Over the 21 special stages of this weekend, he set 12 fastest times. He finished the rally with a lead of 36.1 seconds over Brice Tirabassi.

"This event was difficult for me," said Jean-Joseph, "because my starting order often meant I had to overtake slower competitors, which is far from easy in this dust! Because of that, I had a few big scares, but luckily it all ended well. When things were going well, I really enjoyed myself with the Clio.

"The organisers had put a really exciting course together. A special stage like 'New Tarzan' is fantastic! We took advantage of this event to try some new suspension set-ups. This is an unforgiving event for the suspension, and we managed to make some progress. I would like to finish by thanking Oreca, who gave me, like always, a perfectly reliable car. We did not have any major problems, which is quite an exploit on such an extreme event."

After his win in Monte-Carlo, Brice Tirabassi's Turkey event was all too short, as he retired on the first leg. On a terrain that was new to him - unlike most of his competitors - the FFSA French Team driver put in a faultless performance in Greece. Leading from start to finish, he set 13 fastest JWRC stage times.

During the third leg, Tirabassi was able to manage the comfortable lead he had pulled out during Friday and Saturday. He finished the event with a lead of 55.2 seconds over Swedish driver Daniel Carlsson.

"This was quite simply the most difficult rally of my career, which culminated in my best-ever victory! It was very difficult physically, I suffered a lot, but I am pleased with this result, for my first Acropolis Rally," said Tirabassi. "During the third leg, I was alert for danger, keeping an eye on the rocks on the road, listening to the sounds of the car. It was really rather stressful!"

Thanks to this second win out of three races, Tirabassi now has the sole lead of the JWRC Championship, seven points up on nearest challenger, Suzuki's Salvador Canellas.

Gilles Lallement, technical director of Renault Sport Technologies, had good reason to be satisfied with his drivers' performances. He noted: "Over 21 special stages, a Renault Clio Super 1600 set 17 fastest times in the A6 class. Our two cars reached the end without any major problems. In the service areas, the team did not have to change any structural parts. All this proves both the speed and reliability of the car.

"Brice's race was superb, full of intelligence. For his first time on this event, he was able to pace himself, and to attack at the right moment. This is most encouraging for the future. As for Simon, he was his usual self. His race was perturbed by elements over which he had no control, but he set plenty of fastest times, demonstrating all his talent. All of this with his traditional, generous style, much appreciated by the public!"