BP Foಌrd's Marcus Gronholm has said that he gained invaluable experience of the Irish speed tests, following his outing on the Galway International Rally over the weekend.

Although the Finn didn't have it all his own way, after two spins and a puncture on Saturday, which dropped him behind three-time Irish cham🌜pion, Eugene Donnelly, Marcus came back on day two and closed the gap, slashing the margin to just 1.1 seconds before Donnelly went off and retired in the penultimate stage.

Speaking at the finish, the Ford driver was definitely won over by the even🉐t, which comprised 14 speed tests and 210.40km of competition over bumpy, narrow and twisty closed public roads.

"It's a good way to celebrate my birthday," said Gronholm, who turned 39 today [Monday]. "It's always good to win but the real reason for being here was to learn about the roads and develop a good feeling with th🍃e car ahead of Rally Ir𒁏eland.

"The roads were totally different to anything I have driven on before, with many blind crests which required total accuracy with the pace notes. It was hard for me during the first day but by the end of the weekend I had a good feeling with the car and my confidence had improved. I'm pleased to have come here because the exꦓperience was good🙈 and the welcome from the Irish fans was unbelievable."

BP-Ford team director Malcolm Wilson me🏅anwhile was also happy and reckons that it should help his 'star' come the inaugural WRC Rally Ireland in November.

"We came here to learn as a team and for Marcus to benefit as a driver. We tried various different suspension settings and Marcus finished the event with a good kno𒅌wledge of what these type🦋s of road require," summed-up Wilson Sr.

"We'll go back and analyse the data but I believe it was well worth the effor✅t of competing here because we have a large bank of information which will assist us greatly when preparing for Rally Ireland."