Ogier Seizes Surprise Lead in WRC Rally Sardinia After Neuville's Crash

Sébastien Ogier acknowledges being taken aback by his position at the lead of Rally Italia Sardinia following a tumultuous Friday that has troubled many competitors in the World Rally Championship.

Despite facing challenges from early-morning road conditions while beginning his run in third place, the eight-time world champion managed to finish Friday’s six gravel stages with a 2.1-second advantage over Hyundai’s driver. Adrien Fourmaux .

Ogier defied his road position to grab the lead after the opening stage but dropped to third behind Hyundai duo Fourmaux, who took a 2.9s lead over Thierry Neuville into the midday service.

However, the ultra fast and narrow Telti - Calangianus - Berchidda stage, that ruined M-Sport-Ford trio Josh McErelean, Gregoire Munster and Mārtiņš Sesks ’ day, once again wreaked havoc in the afternoon.

Neuville hit a rock with the left rear of his i20 N, causing him to drop out of the race despite leading after taking the position from Fourmaux by just 0.2 seconds. Fourmaux couldn't maintain his lead once again because adjustments made to his Hyundai i20 N before the next stage did not benefit him.

Ogier pounced on the moment, winning the stage while taking 6.7s from Fourmaux to end the day in a surprise lead - a feat made even more impressive by his Toyota team opting not to test before the rally, unlike their rivals.

"I'm certainly very pleased. I would have definitely agreed to sign and wouldn’t have put money on that, particularly given the competition we're up against right now," stated Ogier.

I must be content with our efforts today and securing the best possible starting position for the remainder of the weekend would be perfect, though the margins remain extremely tight. We've completed one portion of the task, yet a significant part still awaits.

Adrien Fourmaux, Alexandre Coria, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1

Photo courtesy of: Red Bull Content Pool

Forämlöx found himself regretting the adjustment to his setup ahead of the last stage of the day yet felt encouraged to still be in contention for potentially securing his first-ever World Rally Championship win.

"It’s very tight, which is good news, even though I’m just two seconds behind Seb. All things considered, it was an excellent day. Ideally, I’d like to be out front, and I know I needed to perform stronger during the final stage. Unfortunately, I messed up the setup and ended up losing some valuable time," stated Fourmaux.

“After what happened in Portugal [where we retired from the victory fight with a technical issue] I can be happy.”

Hyundai’s Ott Tanak ended Friday in third, 7.3s adrift of the pace after a broken front damper cost him valuable time in stage six. The 2019 world champion, who had been struggling with the handling of his i20 N in the morning,  had closed to within 1.2s of then leader Fourmaux before the issue struck.

"For one part of the stages, everything was smoother with the car, but we encountered issues with the suspension afterward. In the final stretch, our aim was to minimize losses. The exact reason for these problems remains unclear. Despite giving it our all, we were unable to push further," stated Tanak.

Sami Pajari arguably delivered his finest performance of the season so far, finishing the challenging day in fourth place, 16.8 seconds off the lead set by Ogier. The Finnish driver was ahead of the two-time world champion. Kalle Rovanperä , finished the day feeling motivated by the progress he made after having difficulties with his GR Yaris earlier in the morning, beginning the next stage second on the route.

"I'd say this afternoon I felt quite content with my performance at the Sardinian level since I'm usually not entirely at ease here, yet it appears we've managed to find some speed," stated Rovanperä, who will begin Saturday lagging 22.8 seconds behind Ogier.

The main issue is that I find myself having to strain the tires excessively. While pushing hard does improve lap times, it leads to significant tire wear as well. We need to focus on this aspect for tomorrow’s session.

Championship leader Elfyn Evans encountered the most challenging road conditions, which were evident in his timings. The Welsh competitor believed that despite having to clear the route, this accounted for more than just being 1 minute and 9.8 seconds behind the leader in sixth place.

Evans performed better than his teammate did. Takamoto Katsuta , who hit a rocky section at a slow, steady pace with a right-handed turn, causing his GR Yaris to roll over. Spectators assisted in flipping the vehicle back upright, enabling the driver from Japan to continue racing and finish seventh position [ahead by 2 minutes and 27.9 seconds].

Elfyn Evans, Scott Martin, Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT Toyota GR Yaris Rally1

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

Neuville wasn’t so lucky in the stage as his brush with the rocks at high speed ripped the left wheel from his i20 N forcing the world champion into a first retirement of the year.

“I lost the front and had to correct the line and at that point the rear went wide and I hit a stone and it was over,” said Neuville.

“It could have been a massive crash but in the end we just went a little bit wide and it took off the rear. The smallest mistakes in rallying pays cash and sometimes nothing happens, but it is unfortunate for us as we were leading at the time.”

The rally continues on Saturday with six stages scheduled, covering 121 competitive kilometres.