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Mikko Hirvonen and Jari-Matti Latvala will be throwing everything they've got at the Wales Rally GB in an attempt to wrestle the manufacturers' title away from Citroen.

Ford Team boss Malcolm Wilson has told his two Finnish drivers to go flat out in an attempt to register the dominant result that they need to give themselves a chance at a third consecutive title.

Wilson's BP Ford Abu Dhabi team heads to the season finale trailing Citroen by eleven points, but with the Blue Oval drivers having secured a one-two finish both in the last rally, Japan, and in last year's Rally GB, the team are confident that they can take the championship right to the wire.

"There is only one instruction," said Wilson. "Mikko and Jari-Matti both have to drive flat-out. There is nothing else that we can do.

"We will monitor what happens during the event, but certainly from the outset they have to be right up there. We have got to finish first and second. We cannot afford to hang back in any shape or form.

"Last year we finished first and second in GB with Marcus [Gronholm] and Mikko and I am confident we can achieve a similar result this year. Mikko and Jari-Matti are two of the most exciting drivers' in the championship.

"If we do finish first and second that would be great, but we will still be dependent on Sebastien and Dani."

The route for this year's rally has undergone several changes, and though that will add an element of unpredictability Wilson is confident that his men will be able to master the unknown.

"A small percentage of the rally is a bit like a new rally," said Wilson. "A bit like Japan. Those types of conditions tend to favour our drivers."

There is one other thing to throw into the mix: the Rally GB is one of the few that five-time WRC champion Sebastien Loeb has yet to win, an omission on his CV that he is keen to rectify.

"We know it is a big ambition of his to try and win the rally," said Wilson. "But of course Sebastien has got to be mindful and if we finish first and second, Citroen need to get both cars to the finish to still be in with a chance of winning the manufacturers' championship."

The other big focus for the rally will be the appearance of motorcycling legend Valentino Rossi, who will be taking part in a WRC rally for the second time following his appearance at the 2006 New Zealand Rally. It's a prospect that Wilson is hugely excited about.

"It's fantastic," he said. "He did the Monza Rally recently and finished second overall and really acquitted himself very, very well with the car.

"From what we have seen from the testing up here he is very committed. He has got fantastic understanding of the car."

With Rossi having come 10th in New Zealand, there's even the possibility of him finishing in the points. And should he do so it would help Wilson out: if his team achieves the one-two finish they are targeting, then anybody potentially picking up points that might otherwise help Citroen out will help their cause. But Wilson is not sure that scoring points is a realistic aim for Rossi.

"It will be difficult for him given what the conditions could be like," he said. "If the conditions are consistent and dry he can definitely squeeze into the top-ten. If it is wet, slippery and tricky then as we all know anything can happen."

Though December in Wales might not help a relative rookie like Rossi, there are plenty of other drivers who could do Wilson's Ford team a favour, many of them driving for the Stobart Ford team.

"Last time Francois [Duval] was there he drove very well and he always has gone very well on GB. Okay, it will be a difficult event for him as it is his first event back after the accident in Japan. But Francois could put a spanner in the works and also the likes of Petter [Solberg] and Chris [Atkinson] could as well.

"Certainly the way [Suzuki's] Toni Gardemeister and P-G Andersson were going in Japan was encouraging so they could be up in contention too. But if it is a wet, slippery and tricky Rally GB, anything could happen."

Crash.Net / Eurosport