As form goes, 93 points from a possible 100 highlights the early season dominance of Sebastien Loeb, the six-time world champion.
Loeb, the runaway championship leader, will embark on today's opening leg of Rally New Zealand - round five in the 13-event World Rally Championship season - as the first car on the road.
It will be the Frenchman's fourth "sweeping" experience of the campaign.
But for once, Loeb is expected to struggle. An absence of rain has left the fast, flowing gravel stages drier and duster than normal. Loeb will need to be cautious as he clears debris and sets the driving lines for the pursuing field.
The world champion will, however, almost certainly recover tomorrow, buoyed by a better starting position.
The extent of that recovery will depend on the pace of Loeb's principal challenger, Mikko Hirvonen, the BP Ford Abu Dhabi driver, as it has so often in recent seasons.
Since winning the year's opening test in Sweden, the Finn has been distinctly off the pace.
New Zealand, where Hirvonen has never won, is pivotal to his title push.
With a favoured starting position of third on the road, the Ford No 1 is confident.
"Even if it rains the road will dry really quickly and be clean," said Hirvonen yesterday.
"Running behind Sebastien, he will clean it for me, but for the guys behind like [Sebastien] Ogier and Dani Sordo [the Citroen drivers] it's going to be really clean. They'll be right up there tomorrow night, I'm sure of that.
"I was first on the road on the second day here two years ago. I think I had a 40-second lead, but Sebastien still caught me in one day - the loose gravel can be really bad."
Despite the intrinsic difficulties of the revised rally route - which features just under 400km of competitive distance, making it the longest round of the WRC for almost six years - Hirvonen believes he is in his element in New Zealand. "I'm excited to be back again," confessed Hirvonen, who has amassed 15 points to Loeb's 50 in the last two rounds.
"When I get out on the stages, I remember just why it's alongside Finland as my favourite rally in the championship. It's fast, smooth, fun and there's a big emphasis on endurance. But it's good to have a longer rally."
With eight full stages lying in wait today, Jari-Matti Latvala, Hirvonen's teammate, went quickest during yesterday's shakedown testing session.
The Auckland park venue is also the site of an asphalt-based super special stage tonight.
But as the vast majority of the rally is based on gravel roads, the sealed-surface trial run was of limited value as a set-up exercise.
It did, however, grant drivers an unusual opportunity to recce a rally stage at competitive speed.
"I was determined to set the fastest time because in the past on this surface I've lost out to the pace of the Citroens," said Latvala, whose fastest time came on his sixth run.
"We struggled on the asphalt in Australia last year, but now I think we've found a set-up which gives us an edge."
Set-up, strategy, planning, will all be for nought if the Ford duo fail to execute an effective race.
As Scottish poet Robert Burns once wrote: "The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry."
The only plan Hirvonen will have is stopping Loeb, the victor here in 2005 and 2008.
Because if the Citroen legend claims a fourth win of the season this weekend, the championship looks all but sealed.
* Compiled by Euan Megson
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At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
Strait of Hormuz
Fujairah is a crucial hub for fuel storage and is just outside the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping route linking Middle East oil producers to markets in Asia, Europe, North America and beyond.
The strait is 33 km wide at its narrowest point, but the shipping lane is just three km wide in either direction. Almost a fifth of oil consumed across the world passes through the strait.
Iran has repeatedly threatened to close the strait, a move that would risk inviting geopolitical and economic turmoil.
Last month, Iran issued a new warning that it would block the strait, if it was prevented from using the waterway following a US decision to end exemptions from sanctions for major Iranian oil importers.
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Stars: Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, Jessica Henwick
Rating:****
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Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
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What is the FNC?
The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
It has 40 members, eight of whom are women. The members represent the UAE population through each of the emirates. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have eight members each, Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah six, and Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain have four.
They bring Emirati issues to the council for debate and put those concerns to ministers summoned for questioning.
The FNC’s main functions include passing, amending or rejecting federal draft laws, discussing international treaties and agreements, and offering recommendations on general subjects raised during sessions.
Federal draft laws must first pass through the FNC for recommendations when members can amend the laws to suit the needs of citizens. The draft laws are then forwarded to the Cabinet for consideration and approval.
Since 2006, half of the members have been elected by UAE citizens to serve four-year terms and the other half are appointed by the Ruler’s Courts of the seven emirates.
In the 2015 elections, 78 of the 252 candidates were women. Women also represented 48 per cent of all voters and 67 per cent of the voters were under the age of 40.
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