Stobart VK M-Sport Ford driver Henning Solberg is occupying a strong position at the end of Day 1 of Neste Oil Rally Finland, the ninth round of the FIA World Rally Championship, moving up to sixth place after ten stages of fast-paced action around the Finnish lakes and forests. Team mate Matthew Wilson, meanwhile, is also well-placed to move into a points-scoring position, lying in tenth place overnight and locked in a battle with Citroen Junior driver Sebastien Ogier who is just 3.5 seconds ahead of the young Brit.
After the traditional opening Super Special Stage at the Killeri trotting track last night, 90 crews headed north-west of the Rally HQ in Jyväskylä to take on two passes of a four-stage loop over the famed Finnish forest roads. Ultra high-speeds tested the drivers’ bravery as well as their skill, and the throngs of fans out on the stages were thrilled by the spectacular jumps.
Jan 24 - 27 MC 76e Rallye Automobile Monte-Carlo
Feb 08 - 10 S UDDEHOLM Swedish Rally
Feb 29 - Mar 02 MEX Corona Rally Mexico
Mar 28 - 30 RA Rally Argentina
Apr 24 - 27 HKJ Jordan Rally WRC
May 16 - 18 I Rallye d'Italia-Sardegna
May 29 - Jun 01 GR BP Ultimate Acropolis Rally
Jun 13 - 15 TR Rally of Turkey
Jul 31 - Aug 03 FIN Neste Oil Rally Finland
Aug 15 - 17 D ADAC Rallye Deutschland
Aug 28 - 31 NZ Rally of New Zealand
Oct 02 - 05 E Rallye de Espana
Oct 10 - 12 F Rallye de France Tour de Corse
Oct 24 - 26 J Rally Japan
Nov 28 - 30 GB Wales Rally GB
by FIA
Reference: The World Rally Championship (WRC) is a rallying series organised by the FIA, culminating with a champion driver and manufacturer. The driver’s championship and manufacturer’s championship are separate championships, but based on the same point system. This means, for example, that Petter Solberg driving for Subaru can win the driver’s championship but Citroen can win the manufacturer’s championship, which is what happened in 2003, and twice more in 2006 and 2007 when Sebastien Loeb took his third and fourth WRC titles but Ford won the manufacturer’s championship. The competition first received the designation of WRC in 1973. The sport’s commercial rights are administered by International Sportsworld Communicators.
Roger Federer finds a way to chalk out victory
SWISS ace Roger Federer was last night pushed to the brink of the biggest upset in his dominant reign, forced into a pulsating five-set epic against Serbian Janko Tipsarevic.
Federer outlasted the gritty Serb 10-8 in the deciding set but the lack-lustre performance has cast doubts on his campaign for a third consecutive Australian Open title.
Tipsarevic was on the verge of turning giant-killer deep into a marathon 78-minute decider after snaring the first and third sets.
Then finally, Federer broke his opponent’s nerve in a 4hr 27min thriller to win 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (7-1), 5-7, 6-1, 10-8.
A pair of netted forehands in Tipsarevic’s ninth service game gave Federer the crucial break, and he nervelessly served out to win through to the fourth round.
Tipsarevic has notched only one win over a top-10 player and was better known for his tattoo-covered body, distinctive wrap-around glasses and love of Nietzsche and Dostoevsky.
But in a stunning five-set contest, he threw aside that reputation in a punishing street-fight with the game’s foremost artist.
“What a great battle. Clearly somebody has to win, but I wish we could have draws as well,” Federer said after the win.
“It’s not such a relief, it’s more happiness. I am happy I could deliver a five-set thriller. I don’t have them often, except at Wimbledon against (Rafael) Nadal, so it’s nice to be part of something like this.
“I had to really serve well and, in the end, I tried to block out the chances I missed, because I missed a lot of chances in the first three sets. But he played terrific tennis and played me really well, and it’s a pity for him, but what a great victory for me anyway.”
Federer has made 10 consecutive grand slam finals, and had not dropped a set in this tournament since the fourth round of the 2005 Australian Open.
But on last night’s form, it will take a major reversal if Federer is to win the Australian Open next Sunday.
While he found the fortitude to win from two sets to one down, his play was a litany of missed chances, unforced errors and uncharacteristic poor decision-making.
He could convert only five of 21 break-points and broke through the half century of unforced errors midway through the fourth set.
Tipsarevic said he was proud to have pushed Federer to the limit.
“I went on court with the idea I would win. I was close. I lost because he was better in the important moments of the match,” he said.
“You have to believe you are going to beat Roger Federer, as stupid as it might sound. If you go out there thinking I will play a good match, make him sweat for his money, it doesn’t work.
“(Fellow Serb Novak Djokovic) gave me some tips and I used them properly. It could have gone my way.”
Remarkably, broadcast host Channel 7 ignored Federer’s clash to feature media darling Ana Ivanovic’s straight-sets win when it started mid-afternoon.
Then after showing its news and an episode of English soap Heartbeat, it picked the clash up on a substantial delay.
What started out as a curiosity — could Tipsarevic win more than the handful of games Federer had given his previous pair of opponents? — quickly turned into a pitched battle.
Instead of wilting as Federer turned the pressure on, the 49th-ranked player looked increasingly at home on centre court.
With Federer serving to keep the first set tie-break alive, Tipsarevic seized on a key mistake with telling effect.
Down a set point, Federer swarmed into the net but chose to let go a forehand crosscourt and it landed on the back left corner, giving Tipsarevic the set.
It set the agenda for what would be no easy walkover but a dogged battle for every point, and every service game.
Tipsarevic saved five break points early in the second set to stay on serve, as Federer dumped forehands, battled failed Hawk-Eye challenges, and grew more flustered and frustrated.
Only in the second-set tie-breaker did he retain his composure, reeling off seven of the eight points to level the contest.
At 5-4 in the third set he had two set points but, incredibly, Tipsarevic broke him two games later and held to take the third set.
Finally when down two sets to one, he began to find his rhythm when he desperately needed it.
Federer’s Australian Open campaign is alive, but only just.
by News.com.au
Reference: Roger Federer is a Swiss tennis professional, ranked World No. 1 since February 2, 2004, for a record 208 consecutive weeks.He is widely regarded as the best player of his generation and among the elite group of all-time great male tennis players. In 2007, he was named Laureus World Sportsman of the Year for a record third consecutive time.
Federer has won twelve Grand Slam singles titles (three Australian Open, five Wimbledon, four US Open), four Tennis Masters Cup titles, and fourteen ATP Masters Series titles. He has made and surpassed numerous records over the years, including winning three Grand Slam singles titles in a calendar year three times (in 2004, 2006, and 2007)
