Motorsport: Makinen masters mud to lead rally

BOB PEARCE reports on a day when some of the big guns of world rallying come to the end of the road

After surviving the worst a wintry Waikato could provide, world champion Tommi Makinen heads for rain-soaked Northland this morning with a 1m 15.7s lead in the Rally of New Zealand.

The 35-year-old Finn yesterday kept his Mitsubishi on course for his first win in New Zealand through driving rain and on muddy roads "like driving on ice."

His closest pursuer is French Toyota driver Didier Auriol, who was in awe of Makinen's aggressive approach.

"There are a lot of stones on the road brought by Tommi's wheels," he said. "It is incredible where he puts his wheels!"

Close behind Auriol are Juha Kankkunen (Subaru) and Toni Gardemeister (Seat) with New Zealand's Possum Bourne, the first-stage leader, in an impressive fifth place ahead of three works cars, but 3m 24s behind Makinen.

"It's a rally of survival in these conditions," Bourne said before parking his Subaru in Auckland for the night.

Already out of the event are three-time winner Colin McRae (Ford) and the winner of the last world championship round in Greece, Richard Burns (Subaru).

Makinen surged to the lead on the first stage of the day at Te Akau, which he won by 8s from McRae, and he led the rally from there to the seventh stage of the day at Te Hutewai where McRae, who had won two previous stages, squeezed ahead by just over a second.

It was a short-lived lead. Just over 10km into the 29.52km Whaanga Coast stage, McRae's Ford Focus stopped.

The Scot fired up the engine but when it stopped for a second time he could not restart it and he retired.

"It's frustrating," he said. "The car was performing so well and we'd proved we had the set-up right for these stages."

Burns had retired his Subaru after stage six when he was lying fifth. On the previous stage he experienced problems with his gearbox and the team had changed it at the service break. Soon after he stopped at the side of the road with a pool of oil under the car.

Still running in sixth place and pressing Bourne is the Ford No 2, Thomas Radstrom, who rolled his car on the fourth stage and lost a lot of time.

The left rear wheel was bent and every panel damaged but the Swede managed to drive out of the stage and charged back up the field, winning the last stage of the day at Manukau.

Last year's winner, Carlos Sainz, was third after stage eight but on the second time through the Whaanga Coast road his Toyota stuck in first gear for the final 10 km and he dropped back to seventh, more than 4m behind Makinen.

World Group N champion Gustavo Trelles (Mitsubishi) is ninth overall and leads that category by more than a minute from Omani Hamed Al Wahaibi, who must have pined for the sands of home.

Palmerston North Mitsubishi driver Geof Argyle is leading the national championship contenders in 12th overall. Next comes Hamiltonian Ross Meekings in 17th place in a group N Mitsubishi.

Brian Green rolled his Ford out in stage five, Bruce Herbert dropped out with electrical problems and Marty Roestenburg blew a head gasket.

The first stage for the 66 survivors today is at Waipu Gorge at 9.28am. The field will complete nine more stages around Maungaturoto before returning to Auckland at 8pm.