Delecour to be saved by Ford return?

Francois Delecour, fired by Peugeot after the Network Q Rally of Great Britain, may find salvation in the arms of another former employer.

The Frenchman, dismissed by Peugeot after a series of temperamental outbursts this season, looked set to vanish into the rallying wilderness having been overlooked by Hyundai in favour of fellow tarmac expert Piero Liatti last week, but has now been thrown a lifeline by Ford boss Malcolm Wilson.

The Cumbrian, a former team-mate of Delecour's, is keen to strengthen his own squad for next year's WRC campaign, with both Peugeot and Subaru doing likewise with the signings of Didier Auriol, Harri Rovanpera, Petter Solberg and Markko Martin respectively. Despite the ongoing row over surface specialists being entered on specific rounds, ironically heightened by Ford Motorsport chief Martin Whitaker's assertion that teams should stick to two nominated drivers throughout the season, the Blue Oval is gradually realising that it cannot afford to take chances when going head-to-head with its rivals on asphalt. Colin McRae and Carlos Sainz are both multi-talented drivers, but Ford opted to add Liatti to its squad for Corsica and San Remo this season.

Delecour finished second to Peugeot team-mate Gilles Panizzi on both the Mediterranean events this season and, with Ford losing Liatti to Hyundai, may be just the man to fill the gap. The Frenchman last drove for the team when it ran Escort Cosworths out of its Boreham base in 1995.

The man to miss out should Delecour go to Ford will be Toni Gardemeister, who had been tipped to join Sainz and McRae after a number of promising showings in the SEAT this year. The Finn will be regarded as the faster man on the loose, however, and it could be that he and Delecour will share the third seat in 2001.