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Salou, 21 October, 2011 – RACC Rally Espana, the last and also the decisive event of this year's championship, promised a thrilling battle. The difference between the two favourites for winning the title, Hänninen and Tänak, was just three points before the start. Taking place in the surroundings of Salou, the rally offered a big surprise right in Stage 1 - Tänak had an accident that damaged his car and is eighth after Day 1. Having put a very good performance without any major mistakes, Hänninen is second, only one second behind leader Al-Attiyah. Hänninen & Markkula are thus on the best way to accomplish their goal, i.e. win the World Championship title. Hermann Gassner and his new co-driver Timo Gottschalk kept looking for the right rhythm all day long and are sixth before Day 2.

The longest rally of the Championship (406 km in total), RACC Rally Espana is the only event in the calendar to combine gravel and asphalt. The drivers tried out both on the first day – two stages were gravel only, the rest was a mix of both surfaces. Furthermore, the difference between the morning part and the afternoon one was like day and night – while in the morning the drivers had to cope with loads of dust on the road, the afternoon brought a heavy rain to make the track extremely muddy. In combination with the evening darkness, driving on the gravel roads became very risky.

Juho Hänninen: "Our situation changed right in Stage 1, but we realise what is at stake here. We know that we must use our brains and remain focused. It's still a long way to the finish."

Hermann Gassner: "We have been doing our best to find the right rhythm. The conditions on the track were really challenging today – loads of dust in the morning, wet roads in the afternoon and driving on gravel in darkness. We believe that we will be faster on asphalt in the stages to follow."

The rally continues on Saturday with six stages (143 kilometres). The programme of Day 2 will start with the event's longest stage (46km) that the drivers will do twice. The rest of the rally will be done exclusively on asphalt roads.

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