Mikko Hirvonen's victory at the Monte Carlo Rally enabled him to move into the top five in the Castrol Driver Rankings when the second weekly update was released on Monday.
The Finn, who secured a dominant win for M-Sport's new Ford Fiesta S2000 on the car's competition debut in the International Rally Championship opener, began the year tenth in the rankings. But Hirvonen's success bumped Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson down to sixth in the Castrol order.
Hirvonen's triumph in the first major motorsport event of 2010 stands as a full Castrol Rankings points score because it is one of two bonus events he can count outside of his primary category -- the World Rally Championship.
Others who made big moves in the Castrol Rankings this week are Skoda drivers Juho Hanninen and Nicolas Vouilloz, who both broke into the top 200 after finishing second and third at the Monte. British rally drivers Kris Meeke and Guy Wilks also moved up the rankings. The reigning IRC champion may have crashed out of the Monte Carlo Rally for the second year running, but because of the fact that it happened later in the 2010 event he will actually gain three spots!
Rally of Scotland winner Wilks, who is contesting the full IRC campaign this year, will jump 50 places with his sixth place on the event.
For more information and to take a full look at the inaugural Castrol Rankings, go to www.castroldriverrankings.com.