Zoom It wasn't Hirvonen's day

Ford World Rally Team driver Mikko Hirvonen and co-driver Jarmo Lehtinen finished third on Rally New Zealand today as, for the second consecutive season, the event provided a finale that could have come straight from a storybook.

The Finns drove their Ford Focus RS World Rally Car to the Hamilton finish ceremony more in disappointment than celebration after a dramatic ending that also saw teammates Jari-Matti Latvala and Miikka Anttila retire and the team lose a possible 1-2 finish.

After two days of gripping competition over smooth and flowing gravel roads in the Waikato district of North Island, today's final leg started with four drivers covered by less than 15 seconds. The tight leaderboard owed much to tactics as drivers jockeyed for position to obtain the best start position for today.

With the roads covered in slippery loose gravel, those at the front were at a disadvantage as they swept away the stones to leave a cleaner, and faster, line for those behind to follow.

Latvala and Hirvonen were first and second overnight and started in that order today. Latvala's 'sweeping' role helped Hirvonen enormously and the 28-year-old swapped places on the leaderboard with his colleague after the first loop of two countryside speed tests close to Raglan. With those tests repeated, the now clean roads offered a level playing field for all and Hirvonen extended his lead to 9. 8sec over Latvala with just one countryside test and a short spectator-friendly stage remaining.

The 29.72km Whaanga Coast is one of the great challenges in the FIA World Rally Championship, and it lived up to its reputation as the rally's keynote stage as firstly Latvala swiped a bank and retired with a damaged radiator and then Hirvonen punctured a tyre and later spun his Focus RS WRC, losing a minute and sliding to third.

"This is one of the biggest disappointments of my career but that's the way sport goes," said Hirvonen. "I was confident I could drive at normal pace through that stage and win but it wasn't to be because we handed Loeb victory."

"It's not looking so good for either championship now but it's not impossible. An eight-point gap in the drivers' standings will be difficult to make up and it's annoying to end like this after a great weekend," he continued. "But I finished on the podium and what doesn't kill you, makes you stronger. The positive from this event is that I know I can win gravel rallies."