It’s been quite a day in Wales so far. First, the bad news. Carlos Sainz is out. He spun his Xsara off the road during SS3, and though Sainz and Marc Marti were unhurt, they could not continue. Markko Martin is also out with mechanical issues with his Focus. He was having problems from the start and was never really in the thick of things. Marcus Gronholm is also out after breaking a front damper.

On to the good news. Petter Solberg is currently 4.7 seconds ahead of Sebastien Loeb, though Loeb has already won two stages. Conditions have been a bit drier than usual, giving Loeb a more level playing field against the Pirelli-shod Impreza. Tommi Makinen looks to go out of rallying with a bang — he’s currently in third place, though well adrift of the leaders. Colin McRae is also poised to make a run at the podium in fourth. Gilles Panizzi rounds out the top five in his privateer Peugeot (which is too bad for Peugeot, since their chances of reclaiming the manufacturer’s title are quite slim with Gronholm’s retirement).

More news as it happens….

Posted on 7 November 2003