Delecour: I think I clipped a bridge...

Francois Delecour and Daniel Grataloup remain on course for a points-scoring finish on their Safari Rally debut after completing today's tough second leg in fifth position in their Ford Focus RS World Rally Car.

The French pairing continued to revel in the wild conditions endured on the speed tests in the spectacular Rift Valley, north of Nairobi, making light of their inexperience on this most specialised round of the FIA World Rally Championship.

Thirty-eight-year-old Delecour refused to be sucked into a speed battle on rocky and rutted roads made treacherously slippery by yesterday's torrential storm which turned the dusty surface into glutinous mud. He preferred to select his own pace and look after his car in gruelling conditions which have sidelined 22 of the 41 starters.

Drivers tackled five competitive sections covering 426.24km in a route of 1327.81km. Wet and muddy tracks during the early morning became drier as the day progressed and warm sunshine broke through the overcast skies, raising temperatures to 27?C.

Delecour dropped time with punctures on the first and last sections, the most time-consuming on the opening 124.48km road from Marigat to Gari Ya Moshi, the longest test in the championship season. A right rear tyre deflated on his Focus RS early in the section and he had no option but to stop and change the wheel, losing six minutes.

"I had no water left in the washers and in the mud I couldn't clear the windscreen properly," said Delecour. "It was difficult to see and I think the car clipped a bridge which probably caused the puncture. The wheel nut gun didn't work properly and it took us much longer to change the wheel than normal."

Minor power steering and gearchange difficulties this afternoon cost little time and Delecour ended the leg 5min 01sec behind Armin Schwarz in fourth.

"It's a big gap and I don't think I'll be able to catch him but much can happen yet. Tomorrow's tests are the same as the opening day but after all the rain yesterday the roads will probably be rougher so much can still happen, despite the large time gaps separating the top drivers," he added.

"Francois has continued to impress," said Team Director Malcolm Wilson. "It's important that he finishes and continues to gain experience of the roads here for next year but unless those drivers ahead of him hit trouble, he's unlikely to climb any higher. It's the first rally this season on which we're not going to score manufacturer points and that's disappointing. I thought we could score good results here with Carlos and Colin and the performance showed that was likely when the cars were running."