KEY POINTS:
Finnish driver Mikko Hirvonen somewhat uncharitably described his maiden World Rally Championship in the previous round in Australia as akin to a hollow victory.
So the flying Finn was seeking something slightly more tangible when the 37th Rally of New Zealand started in the Waikato today.
While his
first success on the global circuit has been a long time coming -- he made his debut on home soil in 2002 -- it has been even longer since Ford reigned as the manufacturers' champion.
Ford last held the accolade in 1979 so it has been a long time between champagne at the finishing chute for devotees of the American powerhouse.
Hirvonen and fellow Finn Marcus Gronholm are hoping to end that particular aberration on Sunday, though the hard work started in Pirongia at 9.30am today when the first of five stages on day one.
After a trouble-free preamble at Mystery Creek yesterday, the 26-year-old put the prospect of more personal glory aside declaring: "The main thing is to secure the manufacturers title.
"I'm not going after my second win straight away, I'm just thinking about the points in this rally and see how it goes."
Ford, comfortably placed on 167 points after 14 rounds, have a 16-point buffer over Citroen, meaning they need just three points from Hirvonen and/or Gronholm to finish the job ahead of the season-ending British round in Wales next month.
"The only thing we can do is lose it now," said Hirvonen, who admitted his solitary success was tainted.
Injured French world champion Sebastien Loeb was missing from the Perth-based round, taking some of the gloss off Hirvonen's breakthrough victory.
"He's been controlling the rallies this year with Marcus Gronholm.
"For me, I won in Australia but I still haven't beaten Sebastien in a fair fight."
Fellow Scandinavian Petter Solberg, of Norway, would take a victory any which way this year after considering his Subaru team are still to reach the top rung of the podium.
And after a relatively smooth "shakedown" Solberg, who was second in Australia last month, was more upbeat after being critical of the car's set-up before Australia.
"Things are moving forward, I'm pushing hard to get things quicker and the guys are flat out.
"I'm in top form and the car feels good now."
He favoured a muddy track, the more spring rain the better.
"If there's a lot of rain we could have a very good chance, if it's dry, we will struggle a little bit on the twisty stages."
Solberg said inroads to Sunday's podium had to be made from the outset today.
"The first day is a little bit difficult, the second and third days are perfect."
Meanwhile, Italian motorcycling ace Valentino Rossi said his performance over the following three days would have a bearing on whether he would seek a fulltime gig in rallying when his MotoGP career ended.
Rossi said he had a minimum of two years left in the saddle and rallying was his second love, despite test driving for the Ferrari Formula One team this year.
"Rally driving is the biggest challenge for me.
"In the Ferrari there is a lot of aerodynamics, the performance is unbelievable.
"For me it's easier on the track, the braking point and the lines -- it's easier to arrive at the limit on the track."
However, should he ultimately end up in a Subaru, Ford or Citroen, Rossi admitted rally driving would always have something missing in comparison to bike racing.
"You never have the touching (bikes), you never have the real battle in rally.
"I like the battle on the track, you don't just battle the time."
- NZPA