Ford World Rally Team drivers Jari-Matti Latvala and Miikka Anttila finished second in Rally de Espaa today to secure third place in the 2012 FIA World Rally Championship.  The Finns ended this 13th and final round of the series just 7.0sec from victory in their Ford Fiesta RS World Rally Car to clinch a top three series finish for the second time in their careers.The team had already confirmed second place in the manufacturers standings and Latvalas podium ended an emotional weekend for Ford at the Blue Ovals final official WRC appearance.  Team-mates Petter Solberg and Chris Patterson finished 11th in a similar Fiesta RS WRC.Rally de Espaa is the only mixed surface round in the championship and offered 405.46km of action.  Based in Salou on the Costa Daurada coastline near Barcelona, it comprised an opening leg of gravel speed tests before two days of competition on smooth, wide, circuit-like special stages.   Fridays loose-surface roads provided one of the most savage days in recent years.  Heavy rain made conditions treacherous with mud and standing water making survival the name of the game.  Conditions deteriorated with the passage of every car and Latvalas low start position left him at an even greater disadvantage than many.However, the 27-year-old Finn kept his cool to end the day in third and climbed to second early yesterday as the rally switched to asphalt.  He began todays final leg 27.0sec from the lead but two fastest times enabled him to close the gap, maximum bonus points for victory in the Power Stage ensuring third in the title standings.After such a difficult season, third in the championship means a lot to me, especially after missing a round through injury, said Latvala.  In terms of time, this is the closest I have ever been to a win on a rally that is primarily asphalt.  Hard tyres were the right choice for the final three stages and I was closing with every kilometre.  One more stage may have been enough for me to do it.I wanted to finish my career at Ford on a high note and Im so pleased to have done that.  Ive had many fantastic years here building my career and I would like to thank everyone in the team for their support during that time.  I have great memories of my career here that I will carry through my lifetime, he added.   Solbergs chances of a strong result ended on the second stage when he hit a rock submerged in a water-filled rut.  The impact damaged his cars suspension and he retired from the leg.  He returned under Rally 2 regulations with a 25-minute penalty, and climbed from 41st to 11th.I made a good start but everything went wrong on only the second stage, said the 37-year-old Norwegian.  That sums up the season for me.  I was strong at the beginning but unfortunately it didnt last.  I had the speed but bad luck and some mistakes cost me dearly.  Unfortunately I didnt perform as well as I wanted to during the second half of the season.Ford World Rally Team director Malcolm Wilson reflected on the event and the season.  It wasnt the perfect ending, but it was probably as close as we were going to get.  Jari-Matti drove well over the final two days.  The Fiesta RS WRC is very competitive, and although we were quickest in qualifying on many occasions, won Power Stages and set many fastest times, we didnt score as many victories as we should have done, he said.The important thing now is that we continue to develop the car and I hope we can stay at the highest level next year, he added. Ford Racing senior manager Gerard Quinn said: Its the end of an emotional weekend as it marks the farewell of Ford World Rally Team from the WRC.  It was a great honour to have led this programme for Ford over the past three years and Id like to thank our drivers, co-drivers, every team member and fan that has supported Ford.  As our rally partner, M-Sport will continue to lead private team programmes in WRC.  I look forward to providing engineering and technical support through Ford Racing so privateers can continue to compete at the top level in WRC and other rally championships.  News from other Ford teamsAdapta World Rally Teams Mads stberg and Jonas Andersson claimed fourth, moving up from fifth when M-Sport Ford World Rally Teams Ott Tnak and Kuldar Sikk lost time after hitting a barrier.  The Estonians later retired after going off the road.  Evgeny Novikov and Ilka Minor finished 10th, despite incurring a 10-minute penalty late last night for using tyres that did not conform to the regulations.  Martin Prokop and Michal Ernst were 13th and Brazil World Rally Teams Daniel Oliveira and Carlos Magalhaes finished 20th.  Craig Breen won the SWRC support series world title after finishing sixth alongside Paul Nagle in a Fiesta S2000.Final positions1.  S Loeb/D Elena                      FRA             Citroen DS3             4hr 14min 29.1sec2.  J-M Latvala/M Anttila               FIN             Ford Fiesta RS  4hr 14min 36.1sec 3.  M Hirvonen/J Lehtinen               FIN             Citroen DS3             4hr 16min 15.9sec4.  M stberg/J Andersson               NOR             Ford Fiesta RS  4hr 16min 25.5sec5.  J Nikara/J Kalliolepo               FIN             Mini John Cooper        4hr 30min 37.0sec6.  C Breen/P Nagle                     IRL             Ford Fiesta S2000       4hr 32min 39.5sec 7.  C Atkinson/G Macneall               AUS             Mini John Cooper        4hr 33min 43.8sec8.  P-G Andersson/E Axelsson    SWE             Proton Satria Neo       4hr 34min 45.2sec9.  D Sordo/C Del Barrio                ESP             Mini John Cooper        4hr 40min 09.7sec10 E Novikov/I Minor                    RUS             Ford Fiesta RS  4hr 40min 15.7secDrivers                                          1.  S Loeb                      270pts                  2.  M Hirvonen                  213pts                  3.  J-M Latvala         154pts                  4.  M stberg                   149pts                  5.  P Solberg      124pts                  6.  E Novikov                        88pts                  Manufacturers1.  Citroen Total WRT                     453pts2.  Ford WRT                    309pts3.  M-Sport Ford WRT             170pts4.  Adapta WRT             83pts5.  Citroen Junior WRT    72pts6.  Qatar WRT                       71pts* Championship positions subject to the official publication of the results by the FIAStage TimesStage 13: 1. Sordo 10min 33.9sec; 2. Loeb + 2.1; 3. Latvala + 2.6; 4. Neuville + 4.9; 5. Tnak + 6.4; 6. stberg + 6.9; 8. Solberg + 11.6.Overall: 1. Loeb 3hr 26min 50.1sec; 2. Latvala + 27.5; 3. Hirvonen + 1:19.1; 4. Tnak + 1:33.1; 5. stberg + 1:36.2; 6. Weijs + 9:18.7; 13. Solberg + 25:32.9.Stage 14: 1. Sordo 15min 42.7sec; 2. Latvala + 5.5; 3. Loeb + 8.1; 4. Hirvonen + 13.0; 5. stberg + 15.1; 6. Tnak + 20.1; 7. Solberg + 21.8.Overall: 1. Loeb 3hr 42min 40.9sec; 2. Latvala + 24.9; 3. Hirvonen + 1:24.0; 4. stberg + 1:43.2; 5. Tnak + 1:45.1; 6. Weijs + 9:42.3; 13. Solberg + 25:46.6.Stage 15: 1. Sordo 2min 37.1sec; 2. Latvala + 0.6; 3. Loeb + 0.8; 4. Novikov + 1.0; 5. Hirvonen + 1.1; 6. stberg + 1.8; 8. Solberg + 4.8.Overall: 1. Loeb 3hr 45min 18.8sec; 2. Latvala + 24.7; 3. Hirvonen + 1:24.3; 4. stberg + 1:44.2; 5. Tnak + 1:57.0; 6. Nikara + 14:58.0; 12. Solberg + 25:50.6.Stage 16: 1. Latvala 10min 30.7sec; 2. Sordo + 0.3; 3. Loeb + 4.9; 4. Neuville + 6.4; 5. Solberg + 6.6; 6. stberg + 8.9.Overall: 1. Loeb 3hr 55min 54.4sec; 2. Latvala + 19.8; 3. Hirvonen + 1:32.9; 4. stberg + 1:48.2; 5. Nikara + 15:16.8; 6. Breen + 16:09.2; 11. Solberg + 25:52.3.Stage 17: 1. Latvala 15min 43.5sec; 2. Sordo + 2.4; 3. Loeb + 10.7; 4. stberg + 17.1; 5. Solberg + 22.5; 6. Hirvonen + 25.1.Overall: 1. Loeb 4hr 11min 48.6sec; 2. Latvala + 9.1; 3. Hirvonen + 1:47.4; 4. stberg + 1:54.6; 5. Nikara + 16:00.7; 6. Breen + 17:46.8; 11. Solberg + 26:04.1.Stage 18: 1. Sordo 2min 38.3sec; 2. Latvala + 0.1; 3= Novikov, Neuville + 1.4; 5. Hirvonen + 1.6; 6. Loeb + 2.2; 7. Solberg + 3.7.Overall: 1. Loeb 4hr 14min 29.1sec; 2. Latvala + 7.0; 3. Hirvonen + 1:46.8; 4. stberg + 1:56.4; 5. Nikara + 16:07.9; 6. Breen + 18:10.4; 11. Solberg + 26:05.6.