Finn Mikko Hirvonen sealed a comfortable victory in the 56th Acropolis Rally of Greece on Sunday after holding off the challenge of Sebastien Ogier. The Ford driver clinched his eighth World Rally Championship (WRC) victory by finishing the final stage one minute 12.9 seconds ahead of Frenchman Ogier, who had the best result of his career. The win allowed Hirvonen to close the gap on WRC leader Sebastien Loeb, who crashed out on Saturday, to seven points in the overall standings ahead of the eighth round of the WRC, the Rally of Poland, which starts on June 26. Hirvonen's teammate Jari-Matti Latvala took third place in the rally after finishing 32.1 seconds behind Ogier, completing a remarkable recovery after going off the road on Friday's opening day and allowing Ford to earn a maximum 18 points in the manufacturers' championship. The penultimate stage of the event was canceled on safety grounds because of the unexpectedly large number of spectators along the 8.98
