Rally GB

Grönholm ready for the weekend

Tension mounts as Marcus Grönholm gets the green light to take part in this weekend's Rally GB.

Auto Express Car Reviews

By Simon McBride

27th November 2007

The world rally championship will go to the wire at this weekend's Rally GB as Marcus Grönholm has been given a clean bill of health after crashing heavily in Ireland.

The Finn knows he faces a tough task. In order to win the championship, Loeb now only needs to finish fifth even if Gronholm wins the event.

But Grönholm can draw on the unique challenges of Rally GB to aid his challenge. The hilly forests of south Wales, where the three-day rally is based, can be tough in late November as unpredictable wintry weather poses the biggest single challenge to competitors.

Thirty-nine-year-old Grönholm has won twice from 10 previous starts, last year providing Ford with its first British win since 1979.

"It will be difficult to win the title but I have a chance and have to make the most of that opportunity. What happened in Formula 1 is a good example. With two races left, Kimi Raikkonen had a big gap to make up to win the title – and succeeded. That's a big spur for me because for Finland to win both the Formula 1 and the WRC titles would be something special for my country," Grönholm said.

"I don't feel under pressure because it is out of my hands now. All I can do is try to win the rally and hope Seb has problems. This is my 150th WRC start so it would be great to mark that and my last rally with a victory. But it's the title I'm thinking about. I would swap a win for a top three finish and the title if that was all that was required," he added.