More points for Suzuki after fine effort in Finland

Toni Gardemeister and Tomi Tuominen drove an inch-perfect final day to bring their Suzuki SX4 WRC home in eighth place. Gardemeister's drive is rewarded with a drivers' championship point for him and two for the Suzuki World Rally Team. The Finn's team-mate P-G Andersson did not re-start this morning following an incident yesterday afternoon, when the car went off the road and into a tree.

Gardemeister's Suzuki SX4 WRC ran without any faults through the final day. The Finn had dialled himself into the super-quick final-leg stages and was delighted with the handling and suspension of the car.

Toni Gardemeister: "It's been a really good day today - a day I've really enjoyed. The stages are nice, the sun was shining and, of course, there were plenty of Finnish flags flying! It looked as though we could be having a big fight with Matthew (Wilson) today, but we managed to keep him behind. Once I realised that we had the speed to stay ahead of him, it was okay. I could relax and enjoy the roads. To end the event in Ruuhimaki, with those jumps at the end of the stage, is fantastic. That's why people love Rally Finland. I came here feeling we could make points and we have done that. It's been a good week."

Paul Wilding, Suzuki World Rally Team manager: "Toni has driven very well today. He's made no mistakes and the car hasn't missed beat. We're very pleased with the performance and reliability we've found from the latest development of the Suzuki SX4 WRC. Taking points is why we're here, so we're delighted with that. Of course, it's a shame that P-G went off the road yesterday, but these things happen in this sport - particularly on such a high-speed event as Finland. Now, though, our focus switches to Rallye Deutschland and the new challenge of a pure asphalt rally. One thing is sure, though, we go there on a high after a points-finish in Finland."

Final positions
1. S Loeb/D Elena FRA Citroen C4 2hr 54min 05.5sec
2. M Hirvonen/J Lehtinen FIN Ford Focus RS 2hr 54min 14.5sec
3. C Atkinson/S Prévot AUS Subaru Impreza 2hr 57min 22.5sec
4. D Sordo/M Marti ESP Citroen C4 2hr 57min 36.4sec
5. H Solberg/C Menkerud NOR Ford Focus RS 2hr 58min 03.2sec
6. P Solberg/P Mills NOR Subaru Impreza 2hr 58min 09.6sec
7. M Rantanen/J Lönegren FIN Ford Focus RS 3hr 00min 16.6sec
8. T Gardemeister/T Tuominen FIN Suzuki SX4 3hr 02min 24.2sec
9. M Wilson/S Martin GBR Ford Focus RS 3hr 02min 42.8sec
10 C Rautenbach/D Senior ZIM Citroen C4 3hr 04min 36.4sec