Rally Argentina, the fifth round of the FIA World Rally Championship, got underway this evening as the 65 competing crews powered head-to-head around the opening two super special stages near Villa Carlos Paz, to the west of Cordoba.

Typically, and despite the rain, thousands of fervent fans poured into the purpose-built Pro Racing Complex to witness the world’s greatest rally drivers vie for precious seconds during the double run over the 3.44 kilometre dual lane circuit. The atmosphere was electric, heightened by the cover of darkness, and Colin McRae reigned supreme for Ford to take the early overnight lead.

The Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart crew of Tommi Makinen and Risto Mannisenmaki completed the stages in 10th and sixth positions respectively to hold ninth overall, 12.2 seconds adrift of the lead. However, with everything to lose on a spectator stage such as this, the Finns are confident of powering ahead over tomorrow’s classic stages.

"The first time was very foggy and then on the second run through it started to clear, but it was very rutted conditions", commented Tommi. "The surface was very slippery in the recce, but the ground was much harder tonight".

Team-mate Freddy Loix, competing in his 50th World Championship rally, was on a par with his team-mate, the Belgian and co-driver Sven Smeets separated by just 1.3 seconds in their Carisma GT. They hold equal 11th after the opening 6.88 competitive kilometres.

"It was quite foggy when I went through, but I guess it was the same for everybody", he said. "For me it was enjoyable and quite good, but I am really looking forward to starting the longer stages tomorrow".

Mitsubishi Motors drivers hold the top four places in the Group N production car category with Argentina’s Marcus Ligato leading the way in his Lancer Evolution, narrowly ahead of Pablo Davila in a similar car.

Marcos Ligato has been the sensation of the season so far and the Cordoba driver did not disappoint his fans on home ground by moving into the lead in his Lancer Evolution. "We had no problems at all and the car is going well. We have made quite a good start to the rally, but the real stages come tomorrow. I think we already know it will be hard work to beat Gustavo," Ligato said.

Another local driver, Pablo Davila, holds second place in his Lancer Evolution, proving that he can offer a challenge to the World Championship regulars on his biggest rally of the season. "I don’t really expect to beat all these big names, so this is a nice surprise for us. We will just try to do our best," Davila commented.

Gabriel Pozzo is third in another Lancer Evolution. Uruguay’s four-times World Champion Gustavo Trelles is easily the most experienced of the leading drivers in Group N and he made full use of his accumulated skill to hold fourth, just 3.3 seconds adrift. "It is a nice stage, but these two stages are quite short and I think it will be harder tomorrow. There are a lot of good Argentine drivers in this rally," he commented.

Rally Argentina heads to the hills on Friday for the start of the classic stages that represent the bulk of this 389 competitive kilometre event. The action takes the crews to the stages around La Cumbre, 85 kilometres to the north of Cordoba, for six special stages covering 150 kilometres.

OVERALL CLASSIFICATION AFTER SS 2