M-Sport Ford World Rally Team’s Teemu Suninen and Jarmo Lehtinen, sponsored by NGK Spark Plugs, claimed fifth place at the recent Rally Italia Sardegna, the final gravel event of this year’s FIA World Rally Championship.

 
Getting off to a perfect start, Suninen claimed an early lead on Friday morning and was a full second a kilometre quicker than anyone else through the opening speed test. Despite losing some aerodynamic aids and opting for a less advantageous tyre choice through the second pass, he maintained good pace and ended the day in a strong second place in his EcoBoost-powered Ford Fiesta WRC, which is fitted with NGK spark plugs and NTK Lambda sensors.

Starting the weekend stages, the Finn had his sights firmly set on a second podium of the year, but luck wasn’t to be on his side and an issue with the handbrake on Saturday morning prevented a challenge.
 
Mark Hallam, Marketing Manager, NGK Spark Plugs said, “It was another encouraging performance from Teemu and the M-Sport team which continues to prove very competitive this season.”