YORK race ace Alistair Ginley has catapulted himself among the elite of world rallying after giving the performance of a lifetime.

The Rufforth-based driver earned his first-ever World Rally Championship point after storming to eighth position in the recent Cyprus Rally.

In doing so Ginley had to overcome countless problems, including boiling brake fluid, a lost bumper, a blown turbo, punctured tyres, steering problems and falling oil pressure.

But the achievement of Ginley and his Irish co-driver Rory Kennedy was all the more remarkable because the 24-year-old was a private entrant.

In claiming a points finish, he became the first privateer to do so since 1997 and he is believed to be the first British privateer to ever claim a WRC point.

Racing in an M-Sport Ford Focus WRCO1, Ginley's achievement means he is now ranked 18th in the world.

His Cyprus success also followed his victory in the privateers class in the Rally of Turkey with Ginley second private entrant home in the Acropolis Rally in Greece. His finishes in both Turkey and Greece ensured top 15 places overall.

Ginley, who is looking to compete in nine WRC events this season, is hoping his daring deeds and high speeds will prompt a manufacturer's team to offer him a professional drive.

"That's the idea," he said. "The stage times we are having means we are mixing it with the works teams and hopefully people will take notice.

"We certainly got a lot of television coverage from Cyprus and things are going well. We've got a good car and a good team."

Next up for Ginley and Kennedy is the Rally of Germany followed by rallies in France, Spain and Italy before bring the curtain down on the WRC in the Network Q Rally of Great Britain.

Updated: 11:18 Friday, June 27, 2003