SS4: Ostberg makes it three from three

Mads Ostberg has continued his sensational start to the 2011 World Rally Championship by claiming his third fastest stage time in succession on Rally Sweden.

Driving a Ford Fiesta RS WRC, Norwegian Ostberg now leads works Ford pilot Mikko Hirvonen by 24.8s heading to the second service halt of the day in Hagfors.

Several adjustments to the set-up of his Fiesta RS WRC paid dividends for Henning Solberg when he set the second fastest time through the test, which crossed over the border into his native Norway for a time.

Despite piloting a Super 2000-specification, normally-aspirated Skoda Fabia, Eyvind Brynildsen was a sensational third fastest, edging out Hirvonen by 6.2s in the process.

Swede Patrik Sandell was fifth fastest in another Super 2000 Skoda with Petter Solberg sixth and ex-Formula One world champion Kimi Raikkonen an impressive seventh quickest in his ICE 1 Racing Citroen DS3 WRC.

“I thought it was not going too well but wasn’t too bad,” said Finn Raikkonen. “There was a lot of snow and a lot of lines so it was very difficult. Sometimes you go into the ruts and when you jump off the ruts you cannot stop the car.”

Works Ford driver Jari-Matti Latvala admitted he was lucky to keep going after spinning when he hit a snow bank. The Finn, whose Fiesta has lost its rear spoiler, described the stage conditions as “incredible slippery”.

Sebastien Ogier failed to capitalise on Latvala’s woe when he overshot a junction nine kilometres into the stage and was delayed when his Citroen DS3 WRC got tangled up in safety tape lining the route as he tried to regain the stage.

PG Andersson suffered further delay when he picked up a puncture on and lost more than three minutes in the process.

Key moment:

Ogier drops several seconds overshooting a junction and drops to eighth overall, one place ahead of Citroen team-mate Sebastien Loeb who continues to lose time cleaning the road of the loose surface snow.

Standings after SS4: