Last updated 19:42, Thursday, 19 June 2008

THE M-Sport-run Ford World Rally team has set a new record for the sport - 100 consecutive points finishes.

And they hit three figures in style by taking first and second in the Rally of Turkey last weekend (see page 48 for rally report and photographs).

All 100 were achieved in a Focus RS World Rally Car - developed at M-Sport’s Dovenby headquarters.

Ford is the first manufacturer since the launch of the world championship in 1973 to reach a century of successive scores.

The remarkable run began in January 2002 and the Focus RS WRC has since claimed points on surfaces as diverse as the smooth asphalt roads of Spain, treacherously slippery snow and ice in Sweden and rock-strewn gravel tracks in the mountains of Greece.

Ford of Europe motorsport director Mark Deans said: “The consistency required in achieving this record is remarkable given that the WRC is the toughest competition in motorsport for production-based cars.

“It has demanded an outstanding blend of speed, strength and reliability from the Focus RS World Rally Car as well as some sterling performances from the drivers behind the wheel.

"It's also a tribute to Malcolm Wilson and his team at M-Sport that has prepared and run the Focus RS WRC for all 100 rallies.”

Eleven drivers contributed to the scoring run (number in brackets indicates number of scoring finishes): Mikko Hirvonen (43), Marcus Grönholm (29), Markko Märtin (28), François Duval (19), Toni Gardemeister (13), Roman Kresta (10), Colin McRae (9), Carlos Sainz (9), Jari-Matti Latvala (7), Janne Tuohino (2), Henning Solberg (1).