The latest win is the fourth for the BP–Ford World Rally Team this season making it the most successful campaign since 1993 with six rounds still remaining. The victory was Gronholm’s sixth in Finland.

Team-mate Mikko Hirvonen delighted his home town fans by bringing a similar BP Ultimate and Castrol-branded Focus RS to the finish in third place.

It was the third podium of the season for Hirvonen and co-driver Jarmo Lehtinen, and the double points haul enabled BP-Ford to close the gap on the leaders in the manufacturers’ championship, leaving the title race open. Citroen’s Sebastien Loeb won second place.

Rally Finland is regarded as the classic event in the championship. Wide, smooth gravel roads and stomach-churning jumps through the forests ensured that precision driving and bravery were more important here than anywhere else.

The pace through the 21 special stages covering 351.61 kilometers was breathtaking. The BP-Ford team dominated most of the race winning 16 of the 21 stages.

At 38 years old, Gronholm virtually led from the very first kilometer of the four-day rally and set the fastest times on 12 stages. He began the third and final leg with a comfortable lead of over a minute. He set a fast but safe pace through the final four SS’s to win by 66.7sec.

"When I was a young driver in the 1990s, I could never have believed that I would win this rally six times," Gronholm said. "I’ve not had a single problem all weekend and victory here is really important to me.

I had a good fight with Loeb but once he hit a rock and dropped time, I had a comfortable lead and could pace myself to the finish. My target is to win every rally now. I know I can win more rallies this season," the Finn added.

Hirvonen was also in a comfortable position starting the final day, with no pressure from behind. He was fastest on all four stages to fulfill a boyhood dream of a podium in a country where rallying ranks among the top three sports.

"It’s hard to describe my feelings," Hirvonen said. "I have watched this rally since I was a kid, dreaming of a podium and now I have achieved it. It has been clear since yesterday that I could take a podium and it’s a great personal achievement. I was happy with my speed but I need more experience of these roads to be able to fight Marcus for victory. I finished fifth last year, third now so where will I be next year?"

Talking about BP Ford’s double podium in Finland, team director Malcolm Wilson said, "We have won before here but to achieve a double podium with two Finns is fantastic and we are in a great position for the rest of the season.

For Mikko to finish on the podium in his home city is fantastic for him. He did a great job and has progressed so much this year. It would have been very difficult for him to beat Marcus here and he did a mature job. This rally started just four days after the finish of the previous event in Germany and this result is a reward for the thoroughly professional job done by the whole team."

The WRC starts the second half of the season next month as it heads for Obihiro for Rally Japan.

The gravel event is based on Japan’s northernmost island of Hokkaido and is scheduled to run from Aug. 31 to Sept. 3.