Gronholm stripped of Cyprus victory

Finland’s Marcus Gronholm has been stripped of his victory in this month’s Cyprus Rally after it was deemed that Peugeot’s water pump was illegal.

He and team-mate Harri Rovanpera, who finished fifth in Cyprus, were removed from the official standings and lost their points.

With the Peugeots excluded, French driver Sebastien Loeb of the Citroen team becomes the rally winner and replaces Gronholm as the championship leader.

Gronholm loses his 12 points and falls to fourth in the overall standings, 11 points behind leader Loeb, whose tally stands at 35.

Peugeot responded to the punishment by stating: “It is with profound disappointment that Team Peugeot Total learnt today of the stewards’ decision to exclude Marcus Gronholm and Harri Rovanpera from the results of the Cyprus Rally.

“Although Peugeot Sport presented official documents certifying that the water pump used was effectively built using standard parts fitted to the homologated engine, the stewards judged that the component in question did not comply with the regulations.

“Peugeot Sport’s good faith was not questioned but was not sufficient to convince the stewards.

“Peugeot Sport will not appeal against this decision and, to put this disappointment behind them, the team, Marcus and Harri will now focus all their energy on the next rallies of the 2004 World Rally Championship.”

Estonian Markko Martin moves up to second place in the Cyprus Rally and in the championship rankings, while Petter Solberg – who finished fourth in Cyprus - nudges ahead of Gronholm in the drivers’ table.