Petter Solberg "It's quite high speed out there now, everyone's driving at a high level and it's very competitive. For me, things are going well but I struggled in one or two places where the road was very smooth. The KP Pirelli tyre was definitely the right choice for those four stages, but on some of the polished hard based sections, you'd almost be better off with a tarmac tyre. After service, I'm going to put in a little extra and try to move the pace on a bit more." Mikko Hirvonen "Compared to my road position yesterday, I'm dealing with a lot more loose gravel on the stages today. The stages are a completely different character from yesterday - it's almost like day and night. But, I have to say, I'm much, much happier with the way I'm driving. I made some little changes to the set up, but I've found a good comfortable pace and even with the slippery surface I think I'm much quicker."

SS10 1123hrs Parahi 1 25.18km Following overnight rain, intermittent damp patches were evident throughout the first loose gravel stage of the day. Resuming their battle for the overall lead, pacesetters Marcus Gronholm, Markko Martin and event leader Petter Solberg were the drivers to watch. Completing the 25km test first, second and third quickest respectively, the trio were more than nine seconds faster than the rest of the field. At the finish, it was Subaru's Solberg who remained in the top spot. Although the test's mixture of narrow sections and fast crests brought no problems for any of the leading WRC crews, Sainz remained unhappy with the set up of his new Citroen Xsara WRC2004 and lost a further 24.6 seconds to the leaders. After the finish, crews completed a 23km road section to the start of SS11. Fastest Time: Gronholm (Peugeot) 12:57.2 SS11 1216hrs Batley 1 16.97km The large number of high speed, sixth-gear blind crests included in the 16.97km test from Batley demand the ultimate in driver concentration and confidence in their pace notes. Undeterred by the demanding terrain and repeating their earlier performance in SS10, Marcus Gronholm, Markko Martin and Subaru driver Petter Solberg once again took the top three times, but this time Sebastien Loeb was only 0.8 seconds behind. Lying second in the overall standings, Peugeot driver Harri Rovanpera was fifth fastest, but with team-mate Gronholm on a surge, at the finish just 3.6 seconds separated the pair in second and third overall. As the cambered gravel road surface began to dry in the midday sun, Sainz continued to struggle in his Xsara and finished 17.6 seconds off the winning pace. After the finish, cars made their way to the start of SS12. Fastest Time: Gronholm (Peugeot) 9:23.1 SS12 1244hrs Waipu Gorge 1 11.24km Problems for Gronholm on the first run through the scenic Waipu Gorge test. Encountering difficulties with his Peugeot's differential pressure, the Finn dropped more than eight seconds and fell to fourth place overall. Ford's Markko Martin was fastest, which was enough to move him up to third overall, while Solberg was second fastest and Loeb third. Negotiating the 11.3km fast and flowing gravel test, which featured a rock face on one side on the road and a drop into a river on the other, Solberg extended his lead to 23.9 seconds. There were no retirements, but Ford's Francois Duval lost time when he was held up by Ford privateer, Antony Warmbold. The German, who had been forced to stop mid test due to mechanical reasons, rejoined in front of the Frenchman who subsequently lost more than 30 seconds. A good run for Subaru driver Mikko Hirvonen saw the young Finn finish fifth fastest. Fastest Time: Martin (Ford) 6:36.6 SS13 1307hrs Brooks 1 16.03km With temperatures rising to around 17 degrees, Martin was again fastest to notch up his second consecutive stage win of the day and move up to second place overall. Solberg was second fastest and Loeb third. Rovanpera managed only eighth fastest and fell to fourth overall. As the skies cleared, hundred of fans turned out to see their favourite rally drivers drive through the fast test, with most congregating around the famous railway bridge jump. After the finish, crews returned to Paparoa for a scheduled service. Fastest Time: Martin (Ford) 9:47.3 SS14 1513hrs Parahi 2 25.18km Marcus Gronholm was back on the attack in the repeated Parahi test and took his third stage win of the day. With his hydraulic problem having been corrected in the preceding 20-minute service, the Finn was fastest by 4.5 seconds and moved back up to second overall. Gronholm's gain was Martin's loss and despite setting the second fastest time, the Estonian dropped back to third. At the finish 0.8 seconds separated the pair, with Rovanpera lying a further 12.5 seconds behind. Current World Champion Petter Solberg was fourth fastest through the 25km stage and remained at the top of the leaderboard by a margin of 23.5 seconds. After SS14, crews completed the road section to the start of SS15. Fastest Time: Gronholm (Peugeot) 12:41.2 SS15 1606hrs Batley 2 16.97km The repeated Batley stage bought no change to the overall top ten, but Gronholm was on a charge. Taking his sixth stage win of the event, the Finn recorded an average speed of 111kph to slash 14.8 seconds from his previous Batley stage time and end the test 15.8 seconds off Solberg's lead. Martin was second fastest and Loeb third. Featuring an especially hard packed base layer, the repeated stage cleared of loose gravel more than any other in the day and 'polished' with the passing of every car. This was to such an extent that ninth-on-the-road Petter Solberg commented that a tarmac tyre would almost have been a more appropriate option to cope with the slippery conditions. After the finish, crews moved to the start of SS16 Fastest Time: Gronholm (Peugeot) 9:08.3 SS16 1634hrs Waipu Gorge 2 11.24 km As the tension mounted during the penultimate test of the day, less than four seconds separated the top six finishers. Sebastien Loeb took his first win of the event, with Martin second, Gronholm third and event leader Solberg fourth. Despite Gronholm's push, in the overall standings he remained 14.2 seconds off the overall lead. There was no change to the overall top ten and after the finish crews moved directly to the start of the final test, SS17. Fastest Time: Loeb (Citroen) 6:26.3 SS17 1657hrs Brooks 2 16.03km With clouds of thick dust making driving conditions difficult in the closing stages of the day, the gap between each car's starting time on SS17 was extended from one minute to two. Asserting his position at the top of the leaderboard, Solberg was fastest through the repeated test to take the stage win and end the day with a 19.5 second advantage. Loeb was second fastest and Gronholm was third. The Finn ended the day in second place overall, 4.7 seconds ahead of Martin in third. Fastest Time: Solberg (Subaru) 9:34.4