Motor Sport: Marcus Gronholm upped the ante in his battle with Sebastien Loeb as the World Rally Championship got underway in Ireland for the first time this evening.
Gronholm, who holds a four point lead over the Frenchman as the championship reaches its penultimate stage, was fastest in the curtain raising super-special stage at Stormont in Belfast this evening, clocking a time of 1 min, 30.8 seconds.
Reigning world champion Loeb, who requires victories in the final two legs to retain his title, came home second in Belfast in 1:31.7 seconds.
Kris Meeke headed the Irish challenge and had led for much of the evening until Gronholm and Loeb went head to head. The 28-year-old finished third, one second behind Gronholm.
The cross border event, a newcomer to the 2007 calendar, moves to Sligo and Donegal tomorrow with a further 19 stages scheduled to take place around the rally centre in Sligo over the next three days.