BP-Ford World Rally Team's Marcus Gronholm is looking to fulfill a pre-event promise to win it all after capturing the quickest time during today's Shakedown. Gronholm completed his run in 2 minutes 57.5 seconds. Subaru World Rally Team's second driver Chris Atkinson completed Shakedown with an identical time as Gronholm.
Reigning world champion Sebastien Loeb was the day's third quickest driver - 0.3 seconds behind Gronholm and Atkinson. Loeb comes into the Italian rally with a 21 point advantage in the drivers' standings above Gronholm, and if the Shakedown times are any indication of the weekend's event, the top drivers promise to be close.
OMV-Peugeot Norway World Rally Team's Henning Solberg finished as the fourth quickest driver - a full 1.4 seconds ahead of his younger brother and Subaru's number one driver Petter Solberg. Solberg finished Rallye Argentina second overall last month and is looking to continue his positive run of gravel events and claw his way back into contention for the drivers' championship.
Team-mate to Henning Solberg - Manfred Stohl - completed as the sixth quickest driver. Stohl was 0.3 seconds behind Petter Solberg's time. Stohl and Subaru's Solberg both have 18 points in the drivers' standings leading into Italy and both will be looking to distance himself from the other in the standings.
Jussi Valimaki completed Shakedown as the seventh quickest driver in a Mitsubishi Lancer WRC at three minutes 0.9 seconds and was followed by the 2005 FIA Junior World Rally Champion Dani Sordo, who finished the day as the eighth quickest driver.
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