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The Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart crew of Alister McRae and David Senior arrived back at Cordoba’s Olympic Stadium in eighth position at the end of a dramatic final day of the 2002 Rally Argentina.

Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution WRC Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart A. McRae / D. Senior

Marcus Grönholm and Tommi Mäkinen provided the excitement at the head of the leaderboard this morning, the dueling Finns dicing for outright honours until Mäkinen dramatically retired after a sixth-gear accident in the penultimate stage. Grönholm therefore won on the road, however, at the end of the event, the French manufacturer was called in front of the Stewards to answer allegations of assistance to Grönholm outside Parc Fermé this morning. As a result, Grönholm was stripped of his victory, excluded, and team-mate Richard Burns was handed the win. In the Drivers’ Championship, Grönholm hangs on to his lead, two points ahead of team-mate Richard Burns. And, in the Manufacturers’ Championship, Peugeot’s ten points with Burns means it still has a commanding advantage over nearest rival, Ford.

The final leg of Rally Argentina took the crews 115 kilometres to the southwest of Villa Carlos Paz to Mina Clavero, the base for today’s 498.86 kilometre route. Just four stages and 73.87 competitive kilometres lay in way, but being some of the classic and most famous stages in the event, nothing was guaranteed until reaching the finish ramp. Weather conditions remained overcast, but this did nothing to deter the fanatical locals who trekked into the stages to witness world-class action on the demanding gravel roads.

Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution WRC Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart A. McRae / D. Senior

The Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart crew of Alister McRae and David Senior moved into 9th position following Makinen’s retirement and Gronholm’s exclusion, and the British crew completed the leg with nothing more than a spin.

"The first stage was good, although it was a bit foggy and the surface was quite dirty, but we got a clean run", said Alister. "We had a spin in the second and lost about 15 seconds manoeuvring the car back onto the stage. Generally it’s frustrating to have lost time through mechanical problems but if we look at the time we lost, without it we could have been in a points-scoring position. The car feels better than it did in Cyprus and certainly performs better on fast and more open stages. Obviously there is still a lot of work to do though".

Summing up the event, Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart Team Director John Easton said: "It’s disappointing not to be rewarded with a points finish after all the effort the drivers and team have put in. We’ve clearly made a step forward with the car since Cyprus, and both the drivers and the times have confirmed this. But we now hope that the intensive development work we are putting into the car will return us to the top of the timesheets".

Meanwhile...

Overnight leader Tommi Mäkinen (Subaru), and Marcus Grönholm (Peugeot) had set the scene for a thrilling battle to the finish, Grönholm inching ahead in the opening stages today until Makinen had a high-speed sixth-gear accident in stage 21 - reportedly one of the biggest in his career - and retired from the rally. As a consequence, Grönholm cruised through the final stage, appearing to take his third victory of the season until the team was called in front of the Stewards to answer allegations of illegal assistance this morning. The allegations were upheld, Grönholm excluded, and second-placed Richard Burns inherited the win, his first with Peugeot. Carlos Sainz (Ford) who started the day fifth, overhauled Petter Solberg (Subaru) in the opening stage when the Norwegian overshot a junction, but then fourth became third when Makinen retired, and then ultimately second after Grönholm’s exclusion. Colin McRae (Ford) moved into fourth position behind Solberg, fifth position was taken by Markko Märtin (Ford) and the final drivers’ points went to Toni Gardemeister (Skoda). The Czech manufacturer also scored points with Kenneth Eriksson who finished seventh overall, sixth of the registered crews.

Coming next ...

The FIA World Rally Championship returns to Europe in three weeks time for the Acropolis Rally (13-15 June). Renowned as one of the roughest and hottest events in the series, the third of five consecutive loose surface events is sure to be an exacting test of man and machinery.

IMPORTANT UPDATE

At post event scrutineering, Car No. 1 (Richard Burns/Robert Reid) was deemed not to conform to the homologation form.

As a consequence, the crew has been excluded because of non-conformity of the car. Peugeot Sport is not appealing against the decision.

The winner of the rally is Carlos Sainz, who now equals Tommi Mäkinen on 24 World Championship rally wins. Alister McRae (Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart) finishes eighth overall.

Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution Gr.N R. Ferreyros / D. Vallejo

Mitsubishi Motors driver Ramon Ferreyros took a clear lead in the 2002 FIA Production Car World Rally Championship with a resounding victory on the fourth round of the series, Rally Argentina, driving a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution. Mitsubishi drivers dominated the leaderboard, taking four of the top six places in the production class.

Ferreyros began the final leg locked in combat with Japan’s Toshihiro Arai, but despite an early scare when he skidded off and damaged the front of his Lancer Evolution on the day’s first stage, the Peruvian romped to his second victory of the year.

"I am very happy indeed. We didn’t lose many seconds when we went off, but it cost a lot of years! It’s been a real fight most of the way and it’s such a tough rally, I’m relieved to be here", Ferreyros said.

Karamjit Singh finished third for Proton, with the top Argentine driver Federico Villagra fourth in his Lancer Evolution.

"I just wanted to finish today. These stages are really difficult and it was important not to make a mistake. I am very satisfied with our result", Villagra stated.

Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution Gr.N R. Ferreyros / D. Vallejo