day 3

1. Sebastien Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1min 27.987secs 128 laps* 2. Nico Rosberg Williams-Toyota 1min 29.729secs 143 laps 3. Lewis Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 1min 30.242secs 81 laps

Mikko Hirvonen led the Rally Japan from start-to-finish this weekend, but while he took the maximum haul it wasn't sufficient to keep his title dream alive and with Sebastien Loeb finishing third, the Frenchman becomes the first ever driver to win the WRC crown five times.

Felipe Massa brought Ferrari's three-day test at the Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello to a close today [Friday].

Red Bull topped the times for the third day in succession on Thursday at the Jerez de la Frontera circuit in Spain, but this time it was the turn of 'A' team member, Mark Webber to set the pace.

Petter Solberg took an incredible second place finish on the Acropolis Rally on Sunday with the all-new Impreza WRC2008 - and then declared that the Banbury-based outfit is definitely on the way back to its former glories.

Britain's Matthew Wilson was left 'gutted' on the Uddeholm Swedish Rally on Sunday when a mechanical problem put him out with just one stage to go.

Andreas Mikkelsen secured his best ever result on the Uddeholm Swedish Rally on Sunday, when he brought his privately-entered Ford Focus RS WRC06 home in fifth place overall.