Reigning world rally champion Sébastien Ogiergave a demonstration of handling wet conditions as the Toyota driver took back the lead in Rally PortugalOliver Solbergsuffered a loss due to a flat tire and a skid.
The nine-time world champion once more demonstrated his superiority in challenging conditions, finishing Saturday’s grueling 145-kilometer stage with a 21.9-second advantage over Hyundai’s driver.Thierry Neuville. Toyota’s Sami Pajariplaced third, another 3.9s behind.
Ogier began the afternoon session 0.5 seconds behind Solberg, who had impressed everyone by moving from fourth to first place in the wet conditions of stage 14.
Nevertheless, Solberg’s lead in the rally didn’t last long since Ogier reacted in the first stage following the midday service. Conducted under mostly dry weather, Ogier acknowledged he had to exert more effort after Solberg’s time in stage 14 and succeeded in winning the stage by 0.1 seconds over Pajari.
Solberg lost 4.5 seconds in the test, moving him to second overall, 4.0 seconds behind Ogier. However, his second place would drop to fifth in the following stage. A front right flat tire, probably caused by sharp bedrock encountered during the challenging Stage 16, cost Solberg 18.8 seconds.
The tire problem put Ogier in a 3.9-second lead over Neuville in the rally, while Pajari climbed to third and the championship leader.Elfyn Evans snatched fourth.
Intense rainfall led to hazardous wet and muddy conditions during stage 17 (Amarante), pushing teams to their absolute limits.
The spotlight was on rally leader Ogier, who made a remarkable performance, finishing 11.2 seconds ahead of the rest. This time helped him increase his lead over Neuville to 16.0 seconds.
“Not the most pleasant phase, but we managed. The driving wasn’t very good, it was more about getting through. I’ll take that,” said Ogier.
Solberg once again performed well in the wet conditions, similar to his performance in stage 14. However, this time he was unable to surpass Ogier, though his third-fastest time was sufficient to climb into fourth place ahead of Evans, who paused briefly after losing the front of his vehicle.
Ogier executed another impressive drive to claim victory in stage 18, which also included significant puddles, featuring a part similar to the Safari Rally Kenya.
Following a 19.1s deficit to Solberg during the morning’s initial run of the stage, Ogier managed to record a time 3.7s quicker than Evans, securing the stage victory and extending his rally lead over Neuville by 20.2s.
Ogier increased his advantage by an additional 1.7 seconds following his victory over Neuville. In the head-to-head Super Special race, which took place in heavy rain at the Lousada rallycross track, Pajari fell short against Solberg but still maintained third place overall.
Solberg managed to keep fourth place [+49.6s], but was upset by a spin in stage 18 which cost him important time. Championship leader Evans finished the loop in fifth [+58.2s], ahead of Hyundai’s drivers.Adrien Fourmaux, who secured two stage victories during Saturday’s race, but failed to overtake Evans.
Safari Rally Kenya and Croatia championTakamoto Katsutawas also frustrated throughout the day, stuck in seventh position. The Japanese driver managed to gain time in the rain to move into Sunday’s race, 11.5 seconds behind Fourmaux.
Hyundai’s Dani Sordosuffered through a challenging Saturday, unable to gain the pace needed to close the gap with the leading group. The Spanish rider finished the day in eighth place overall [+3 minutes 44.7 seconds]
M-Sport-Ford’s Mārtiņš Sesksfinished the day in ninth place overall. Sesks made an impression on wet stage 17 by recording the second quickest time, while McErlean was lucky as fans managed to push him back onto the road after he went off during the same stage.
McErlean experienced a spin at the initial corner during stage 18, and his difficult day concluded with him crashing into the barriers during the Super Special stage due to the slippery conditions.
M-Sport’s Jon Armstrongwas the first Rally1 driver to experience a retirement in the rally after his Ford Puma overturned in stage 15. The Northern Irish driver touched a bank 600 meters into the stage, causing the car to flip. The vehicle ended up off the road with both Armstrong and his co-driver inside.Shane Byrne unscathed.
It remains uncertain whether he will return to the rally for Super Sunday. Armstrong was in 10th place after recovering from time lost due to a power steering issue on Friday.
Crews will tackle four additional stages on Sunday, covering a distance of 65.56km.
Read Also:
jasdooit 
Leave a comment