Gronholm was in fine form to claim the 21st victory of his career

Loeb ended up in second while Ford's Mikko Hirvonen came third for his second successive podium finish.

Gronholm led the event from the second stage and finished more than two minutes clear of the field.

The Ford driver won 11 of the 18 stages, including the last, while Petter Solberg won four stages on the final leg after rejoining the rally.

Solberg missed the final stage on Saturday after being forced off the road by a non-race vehicle.

Defending champion Loeb went into this event on the back of five straight victories and was aiming to equal Carlos Sainz's record of 26 world rally career wins.

He still leads the overall standings although Gronholm has now closed the deficit to 29 points.

I had a good lead on Marcus but there are still eight races left and a lot can happen Sebastien Loeb

"Since the beginning of the year we've had good rhythm but we haven't had much luck," said Gronholm.

"This time we're back. This morning we just had to keep the car on the road and avoid punctures.

"In the drivers standings Sebastien Loeb is too far ahead, above all if he finishes all the rallies, but I'm sure we can win a maximum of rallies and the constructors title."

And Citroen's Loeb says despite his lead in the championship, the title race is not over yet.

"I prefer winning but finishing second after all that happened to us is good," he said.

"Marcus had a great rally, he didn't put a foot wrong, and I lost a lot of time on Friday because of problems with the car.

"Things were better Saturday and I tried to challenge but it was very difficult and then we had a puncture.

"I had a good lead on Marcus but there are still eight races left and a lot can happen. It's going to be a dogfight because Marcus is a very competitive. It's not won yet."

Results from the Rally of Greece:
1. Marcus Gronholm (Finland) Ford 3:56:26.8
2. Sebastien Loeb (France) Citroen +2:26.8
3. Mikko Hirvonen (Finland) Ford +3:43.8
4. Toni Gardemeister (Finland) Citroen +4:20.8
5. Henning Solberg (Norway) Peugeot +4:55.6
6. Dani Sordo (Spain) Citroen +4:56.4
7. Petter Solberg (Norway) Subaru +5:34.4
8. Xevi Pons (Spain) Citroen +8:19.0
9. Jussi Valimaki (Finland) Mitsubishi +11:28.7
10. Matthew Wilson (Great Britain) Ford +13:30.8

World championship standings:
1. Loeb 74 points
2. Gronholm 45
3. Sordo 33
4. Hirvonen 21
5. Solberg 20
6. Manfred Stohl (Austria) 20
7. Gianluigi Galli (Italy) 11
8. Gardemeister 11
9. Pons 11
10. H Solberg 11