Ott Tänak emerged from a punishing Friday at EKO Acropolis Rally Greece with a slender lead as hovering temperatures and punishing highway situations ripped via the FIA World Rally Championship area.
The Hyundai driver survived an action-packed day of attrition to finish with a 3.0s buffer over his i20 N Rally1 team-mate Adrien Fourmaux, whose tempo and poise have put the Frenchman proper within the hunt for a maiden WRC win.
With ambient temperatures pushing previous 40°C and cockpit warmth even greater, it was one of many roughest, most attritional Acropolis days in current reminiscence. Thierry Neuville, who briefly led after SS3, dropped round three minutes throughout the rest of the day with two punctures, whereas Toyota rivals Takamoto Katsuta and Kalle Rovanperä confronted comparable setbacks.
Tänak, usually unfazed, performed the lengthy sport with a clear and constant strategy alongside co-driver Martin Järveoja. Whereas he didn’t win a single one of many six gravel pace checks, the Estonian’s solely actual scare was a de-beaded tyre in the direction of the top of SS4 and the time loss was minimal.
Fourmaux was speedy and resilient, shrugging off a irritating delay whereas caught in Katsuta’s mud on SS2 to win three levels.
Eight-time world champion Sébastien Ogier lay third in a single day, 16.9s off the lead in his Toyota GR Yaris Rally1. The eight-time world champion began strongly and led the rally till SS5, however earlier injury restricted his tyre choices for the ultimate two levels.
Behind the highest three, championship chief Elfyn Evans held fourth after lengthy day of road-opening in his Toyota, whereas Grégoire Munster sat a positive fifth aboard his M-Sport Ford Puma Rally1 – the Luxembourger brazenly enjoying the lengthy sport with a give attention to staying away from bother.
Takamoto Katsuta was sixth and over two and a half minutes again from the lead after back-to-back punctures on the opening two levels, with Rovanperä seventh, nonetheless within the struggle regardless of stopping to alter a wheel on the penultimate stage.
Defending champion and final yr’s Acropolis winner Neuville, eighth, minimize a pissed off determine after a day that would – and maybe ought to – have delivered extra. “We had been hit twice right now,” he stated. “We pushed, we deserved extra, nevertheless it’s a lottery typically.”
FIA WRC2 drivers Oliver Solberg and Kajetan Kajetanowicz rounded out the general high 10 with Gus Greensmith eleventh forward of Josh McErlean, who additionally stopped to alter a wheel this morning.
Mārtiņš Sesks retired his Puma previous to the ultimate stage with a gasoline subject, becoming a member of Toyota’s Sami Pajari – who was compelled out earlier with a fluid leak – on the listing of Rally1 retireees. Each are anticipated to restart for Saturday’s six-stage leg, which incorporates greater than 120 kilometres towards the clock and begins with the 24.58-kilometre Pavliani stage from 08h22 native time.
In the meantime, Kajetanowicz leads FIA WRC2 Challenger with Turkey’s Ali Türkkan forward in FIA WRC3 and FIA Junior WRC. Türkkan’s compatriot Uğur Soylu holds first place within the FIA WRC Masters’ Cup.
