BP Ford number two driver, Mikko Hirvonen has taken tꦰhe first stage win on the 2007 Rally Argentina, the sixth round in the FIA World Rally Championship.

Mikko completed the 2.40 kilometre super special stage around the River Plate football stadium in Buenos Aiඣres in 2 minutes 8.3 seconds, 0.6 seconds up on Marcus Gronholm, who wඣas second best overall to give the M-Sport-run outfit a 1-2 finish.

For the record, Mikko was paired with Manfred Stohl during the head-to-head, while Gronholm battled with Sebastie💜n Loeb.

Daniel Sordo meanwhile came in third for Citroen in fron🔯t of the 60,000 odd spectators, 0.2 seconds adrift of Gronholm in his C4 WRC, while Dani's team-mate, Loeb and Subaru's Petter Solberg tied for fourth, both competing the test in 2mins 9.8 secs.

Chris Atkinso🌌n m🐼eanwhile rounded out the top six in the other works Impreza WRC2007, his first with new co-driver, Stephane Prevot.

Stobart Ford duo, Henning Solberg and Matthew Wilson were seventh and eighth respectively. OMV Kronos Citroen's Stohl was next up in ninth,🅰 ahead of local hero, Luis Perez Companc, in the Munchi's Ford entry.

Leszek Kuzaj finished up just outside the top ten in eleventh. He heads the Production Car WRC category at this very early stage, 1.2 seconds up on St﷽epan Vojtech.

The crews will now travꩲel the ༒700 kilometre distance back to the Carlos Paz service park, where the event is based.

The action begins 'proper' on Friday at 10.45 ꦐhours local time with the 22.95 kilometre-run through the Capilla del Monte-San M🔯arcos 1 stage. In total leg 1 includes over 120 competitive kilometres.