Ott Tänak overtook a wounded Sébastien Ogier to steer EKO Acropolis Rally Greece on Friday night, capping an eventful day that might considerably affect this 12 months’s FIA World Rally Championship title race.
Greece’s notoriously rugged gravel roads lived as much as their punishing fame, with 4 of the championship’s top-five drivers encountering bother and dropping important time. Tänak, nevertheless, piloted his Hyundai i20 N Rally1 by means of the chaos unscathed, topping a commanding Hyundai 1-2-3 in a single day.
Eight-time world champion Sébastien Ogier, who began this rally second within the factors, was left 11.7sec away from Tänak when M-Sport Ford’s Adrien Fourmaux retired from second attributable to a damaged steering arm on SS4. However catastrophe struck Ogier late within the day when a turbocharger subject price the Frenchman round two-and-a-half minutes and relegated him to fourth.
Ogier’s misfortune compounded a disastrous day for Toyota. Workforce-mate Elfyn Evans dropped almost 9 minutes earlier within the day with an analogous turbo subject, whereas Takamoto Katsuta retired on SS3 with rear suspension injury after mis-hearing a pacenote.
Explaining the state of affairs, Toyota technical director Tom Fowler stated: “It seems to be like Séb has misplaced the enhance strain from the turbocharger. We had Elfyn’s automotive this morning with the identical signs.
“It is an enormous disappointment as a result of, clearly, it is one other rally after Finland the place we have now actually robust efficiency within the automotive. In Finland we did not capitalise on that, and it seems to be like right here, once more, we’re not going to capitalise on the potential efficiency that each the automotive and the drivers have.”
In stark distinction, Hyundai celebrated as Tänak led i20 N Rally1 colleagues Dani Sordo and Thierry Neuville by 21.8 and 45.2sec respectively. Because it stands, the Korean marque is poised to increase its benefit within the producers’ championship.
“We’ve obtained to be glad about a trouble-free day. It’s been robust with the warmth and the tough situations,” stated Tänak, who presently sits third within the drivers’ standings. “It’s been an amazing day for Hyundai, however everyone knows there’s extra to return.”
Sordo, making his first look since Rally Italia Sardegna in June, confronted challenges of his personal, managing a defective hybrid unit all through a lot of the afternoon. Championship chief Neuville additionally encountered points, nursing an engine downside within the morning that left his automotive operating on lowered energy, however crucially headed Ogier by 1min 41.2sec in a single day.
Elsewhere, M-Sport Ford’s Grégoire Munster was compelled to cease for a wheel change on SS6, permitting WRC2 frontrunners Robert Virves and Sami Pajari to climb to fifth and sixth total. The pair additionally moved forward of Yohan Rossel, who had dominated the WRC2 class within the morning earlier than dropping time attributable to a puncture.
Munster ended the day seventh with Kajetan Kajetanowicz, Fabrizio Zaldivar and Nikolay Gryazin rounding out the highest 10.
Fan-funded Virves edges Pajari to steer WRC2
The WRC2 battle culminated in Friday’s closing stage when Estonian star Virves vaulted from fourth to first, snatching the lead after heartbreak struck Yohan Rossel.
Rossel, driving a Citroën C3 Rally2, dominated the day’s early levels, posting quickest occasions on the primary 5 exams and constructing a commanding 46.5sec lead over his closest WRC2 rival. Nonetheless, his fortunes took a dramatic activate the Tarzan check when he was compelled to cease after 11.9km to alter a wheel, dropping greater than two minutes and tumbling to sixth within the standings.
Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 driver Virves had been mendacity fourth earlier than the ultimate stage, however a sensational time — 11.1sec quicker than anybody else — propelled him into the in a single day lead, simply 1.5sec forward of Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 ace Sami Pajari.
Remarkably, Virves wasn’t even anticipating to compete in Greece simply weeks in the past. A crowdfunding marketing campaign raised greater than €50,000 from Estonian followers, enabling the 24-year-old to participate within the occasion.
Jürgenson takes cost in Junior WRC; Maior targets maiden win
With two days remaining of this FIA Junior WRC season, it’s Romet Jürgenson with one hand tentatively positioned on the championship trophy, finishing Friday on the double-points paying EKO Acropolis Rally Greece in second place and importantly with respiration house over his closest title rivals.
Aiming to develop into the second Estonian to elevate the trophy previously three seasons, following within the footsteps of 2022 champion Robert Virves, Jürgenson safely navigated his M-Sport Ford-prepared Ford Fiesta Rally3 by means of a few of the roughest Acropolis levels in latest reminiscence, main for giant parts of the day.
However together with his closest rivals for the title sitting additional down the leaderboard, Jürgenson took a conservative strategy to the second operating of Tarzan, giving up the result in reigning FIA Junior ERC champion Norbert Maior, who’s focusing on a maiden victory at world degree.
Saturday’s leg guarantees extra challenges, with six levels protecting 116.23km on the unforgiving roads south of Lamia.
