Mikko Hirvonen recorded his fourth straight victory on Sunday in Australia after championship rival Sebastien Loeb was handed a time penalty for a technical infringement, dropping him to second. Hirvonen now enjoys a championship lead of five points with only two rallies left to run this year.
Absent from the World Rally Championship calendar since 2006, Rally Australia moved to New South Wales for the first time this year, more than 3500 kilometres away from its former home in Perth. Consequently the gravel stages were a complete step into the unknown for both the competitors and Pirelli, which has an exclusive three-year deal to supply the World Rally Championship with tyres up to the end of the 2010 season.
Although the Italian tyre firm started the event with very little information about the conditions, Pirelli's hard compound Scorpion rubber - which was being used for the last time this season - stood up to the task. Among the many challenges faced by the crews were a wide range of weather conditions that varied from heavy rain to bright sunshine, sharp rocks, and changing grip levels. Despite these varying parameters, the competition was so close that the top three runners were covered by just a tenth of a second heading into the final day: a record for the World Rally Championship.
After starting the long final day in second place, Loeb gradually pulled out a winning margin to briefly take the win prior to his demotion. "It was a very close event but the car and the tyres worked perfectly, even on the asphalt super special," said the Frenchman. "It is sure to be an extremely exciting finish to the year."
As well as counting for a round of the Production Car World Rally Championship, which is also supplied by Pirelli, Rally Australia was the venue for the Asia-Pacific selection in next year's Pirelli Star Driver scheme. This programme aims to give five drivers from FIA regional championships the chance to contest six rounds of the World Rally Championship in identical Group N cars.
New Zealander Hayden Paddon, aged 22, was chosen to represent the Asia-Pacific region on the scheme next year thanks to a strong performance that eventually won him the Group N category in Australia. Newly-crowned Junior World Rally Champion Martin Prokop from the Czech Republic won the Production Car World Championship class.
In a region that is well-known for its outstanding natural beauty, environmental concerns are high on the agenda. All Pirelli Scorpion tyres use oil-free compounds, which already conform to future legislation due to come into force next year.
"I don't remember ever seeing a rally that has been this closely contested between title rivals, underlining the durability and equality of our tyres," said Pirelli's Rally Manager Mario Isola. "The Pirelli Scorpion gravel tyres also worked well on the all-asphalt Tweed super special stage, which was used no fewer than six times and formed a notable proportion of the competitive action. Despite some sections that were as rough as the classic Mediterranean gravel rallies, we encountered no major problems with punctures - which has set up a thrilling finale to the season."
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