Tragic accident in Margam stage

[Iliana]

all news are from Rally Racing Live

Two accidents occurred in the difficult Margam stage. The first incident involved Gianluigi Galli. The Italian went off the road in a ditch but was finally able to get back on the road after nearly seven minutes.

The other accident happened when Markko Martin lost control of his 307 and violently hit a tree on the co-driver side. Michael Park, his co-driver, was not able to get out of the car. Medical assistance arrived quickly on the scene but could not help Park who tragically died from the impact.

Michael Park was 39 years old and a father of two children.

The stage was stopped after the accident and Peugeot are now considering the possibility of withdrawing from the race.

RIP :(

Petter Solberg won the 2005 Wales Rally GB but the news of Michael Park's death in stage 15 is by far the main event of this tragic race.

The organisers took the right decision to cancel the final two stages of the race. Nominal times were given to the drivers that didn't compete in SS15.

Peugeot decided to withdraw from the race, leaving Gronholm out of the final results.

Sebastien Loeb dominated the race but the French driver received a 2'10” penalty (probably a calculated decision) at the final service area and finishes third behind Solberg and his teammate Francois Duval.

Michael Park's loss overshadows Solberg's fourth consecutive victory in Rally GB. Loeb is getting closer to his second consecutive drivers' championship title. Mathematically, Petter Solberg and Marcus Gronholm can still challenge Loeb for the title but the gap is virtually insurmountable.

To all of Michael Park's family and friends, Racing-live's team is offering its most sincere condolences.

Current Standings: Drivers:

1. S. Loeb (F)99

2. P. Solberg (NOR)65

3. M. Gronholm (FIN)61

4. M. Martin (EE) 53

5. T. Gardemeister (FIN)47

6. H. Rovanpera (FIN) 27

7. F. Duval (B) 24

8. M. Stohl (A) 16

9. R. Kresta (CZ) 16

10. C. Sainz (SP) 11

11. G. Galli (I) 10

12. H. Solberg (NOR) 9

13. M. Hirvonen (FIN) 8

14. G. Panizzi (F) 67

15. D. Carlsson (S) 4

16. A. Warmbold (D) 4

17. C. Atkinson (AUS) 2

18. C. McRae (GB) 2

19. J. Pykalisto (FIN) 1

20. S. Sarrazin (FRA) 1

21. M. Higgins (GB) 1

Current Standings: Constructors:

1. CITROEN 137

2. PEUGEOT 117

3. FORD 76

4. SUBARU 72

5. MITSUBISHI53

6. SKODA 13