Ford's reliable Focus does the job
Most of the teams admitted that the Rally Mexico's roads were rougher than they appeared. Many cars suffered from mechanical problems and only a minority of teams were able to avoid major mechanical problems.
The Ford Focus' reliability proved to be a major asset, just as Martin and Duval's talent behind the wheel.
Martin was even a bit surprised to be leading the race after stage seven, knowing that he was only fifth at the end of the first leg. The Estonian took advantage of the other drivers' problems to take the lead and was able to control the situation until the end of the rally, notably when Carlos Sainz put some pressure on him in the final leg.
Francois Duval was also able to take advantage of his rivals' troubles. The Belgian drove really well on the rough and tricky Mexican roads, challenging and beating Sainz in a battle for second position. The performance of the two Ford drivers, combined with the reliability of the Focus, has helped Ford reach to the top of the Constructors' championship, 10 points ahead of Citroën.
Loeb's retirement and Martin's 10-second penalty allowed Sainz to position himself in second place, only fifteen seconds from the leader. The Spaniard had an excellent opportunity to win but luck was not on the Citroën driver's side. The Xsara was suffering from brake problems near the end of the race and Carlos rolled his car, losing more than a minute, which was enough to make him fall down to third place.
At least Citroën scored valuable points for the Constructors' championship despite Loeb's retirement.
Pictures and text from Rally-Live.com
Go the mighty Focus :wnc:
Also, just a tip, when there is a thread already on a subject, try not to start any more.
It looks like it could be a good year for Martin & Ford. He has looked good at the opening 2 races & with a bit more luck could have scored better results. I hope they can continue to improve. Ford need a championship they have been in the hunt for so many years & then missed out hopefully this will finally be there year.
Sweet, hope it's just one of many more for them. It's about time they got a championship in return for the money that they have spent on the focus rally car!
bout time we got some sales in Australia from all the money they spend on Rally too!!!
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