Suzuki Ignis shows sparkling form.

Suzuki Ignis driver Daniel Carlsson was cruelly robbed of the Rally Finland JWRC lead by a rogue puncture in stage 8 today. Before then, the Swede had been on brilliant form to lead since last night's spectator superspecial, a prelude to the main action that got underway today.

The other good news for Suzuki was the excellent performance of Finn Ville-Pertti Teuronen, who finished the opening leg in a strong second place. Teuronen is just 9,1 seconds behind the overnight leader, Renault driver Brice Tirabassi. Carlsson's puncture means that he ends the day fourth, while Suzuki driver Salvador Canellas is sixth. Suzuki-driving Estonian Urmo Aava is eighth, having also suffered a series of punctures during the day.

Conditions today were typical of Finland, the fourth round of the Junior World Rally Championship. The roads were fast, furious and lined with thousands of fans. Drivers tackled nine stages, covering a total competitive distance of 138 kilometres over flat-out crests and massive jumps.

Nonetheless, the four Suzuki Ignis entries were totally reliable today, requiring only routine maintenance at the three major service halts. What held the drivers back were punctures: a common hazard on the flowing gravelly roads of Finland.

Daniel Carlsson got off to a flying start by winning the opening spectator superspecial of the rally last night, proving that the eye injury he sustained at home two months ago is well and truly behind him.

He found the going in Finland rougher than expected, and also discovered that the car was stepping out too far sideways on the morning's stages. But some adjustments at service made a noticeable improvement, and from then on he was flying.

On SS4 he was caught out by a sudden rain shower that did not affect his rivals, while on SS5 he lost his rear brakes. But the biggest problem was the puncture on SS8, which forced him to surrender the lead he had held since the opening stage.

He said: "It was such a shame to lose the lead like that, but in rallying punctures can obviously happen. The whole rally was actually a bit rougher than I was expecting. But I have to say that the car has been brilliant today and I am still full of confidence. There's a very long way to go, and I'm sure that we can mount a big attack. Nothing is lost yet!"

Ville-Pertti Teuronen made the most of his previous experience on the Rally Finland to move into an excellent second place overnight after a long and tough day. The Finn was always at the forefront of the action, benefiting from a Suzuki Ignis that was fast and reliable all day. He climbed to second by the second stage, underlining his natural pace. His only drama was a slow puncture on SS6, on the same stone that sidelined his colleague Urmo Aava. Ville-Pertti dropped down to third, but regained second after Carlsson's puncture.

"Today has just been a perfect day for me and I'm very happy," noted Teuronen, "The stages have actually not been too difficult, as I have some experience of competing on them in the past. I've been able to set good times, but without taking too many risks. All I can say about today is that it's been a real pleasure to drive, and I hope tomorrow can be as good."

Salvador Canellas had a trouble-free start to the rally, but had difficulty in finding a rhythm on some of the stages. At the start of the day he lacked confidence but Salvador improved steadily as the action continued. The Spaniard is currently second in the JWRC points standings and is looking to score some more useful points in Finland.

"The car has been perfect today, but I've struggled a little bit to get used to the stages," commented Canellas, "The good news is that I can feel a rhythm coming, so it's just a question of sticking with it and doing the best I can. At least we've been lucky to steer clear of punctures today."

Urmo Aava's day was blighted by punctures - which he suffered on both SS6 and SS8. The worst puncture was on SS6, when the car fell off the jack and the crew lost a lot of time. The Estonian was not entirely happy with his driving either, as he felt he was attacking the slower corners too aggressively and not fulfilling his obvious potential here. But a reliable car means that he is still in a position to challenge for a good points score over the long distance which remains.

"It's not been such a good day," said Aava, "We've been very unlucky with punctures and my driving has not been on top form either. Finland is a very fast and specialised event that requires both luck and skill. So we will just have to hope for better things tomorrow!"

Monster Sport Europe team manager Risto Laine praised the Suzuki drivers' efforts today, saying: "Today's gone according to plan - it's just that we didn't plan for any punctures! Other than that, the cars and drivers have been very good indeed and we're quite happy. But actually I think tomorrow's stages should suit us even better. They are faster and more classic Finland stages, which is where we are really good. There's still more than 260 competitive kilometres to go so we're not giving up the fight yet!"

Tomorrow the drivers are set to tackle another seven stages, including two runs over the classic Ouninpohja stage. Saturday is the longest and toughest day of the entire event, which is guaranteed to provide a massive challenge for all four Suzuki drivers.