Just six stages and 52 competitive kilometres now separate Sébastien Ogier from claiming his first win on a gravel rally this season, the Frenchman with a 33.8 second lead after the second day of competition in Wales Rally GB. Ogier has controlled the pace at the front of the field and while he lost some time to a chasing Ott Tanak earlier today, he remains on course for his 38th world rally victory. Behind second-placed Tanak, Thierry Neuville maintains third for Hyundai. 

Saturday’s leg was an unusual challenge for the crews in that there were 100 kilometres of competition, not only without a midday service but also a tyre fitting zone. So, when crews chose their tyres early this morning, they were committed to them for the duration of the day. Two loops of three stages, plus another two run once, lay in wait and once again drizzly, overcast and misty conditions added to the challenge in the Welsh forests. This did however mean that any concerns over tyre wear were put to one side, the soft and muddy conditions presenting no problems for WRC rubber.

Ogier started the day with a 37.3 second lead over Tanak, who immediately set the pace in his DMACK-shod Fiesta RS WRC. The Estonian pushed Ogier hard, four stage wins helping him close the gap to the Frenchman. However all his hard work came to nothing in the penultimate stage when his road position further down the field saw him lose virtually all the time he had gained. As such, Ogier tops the leaderboard with 33.8 seconds in hand, Tanak now unlikely to catch him on speed alone. Neuville took one stage win this morning but lost time when he hit a bank and thought he’d damaged his i20 WRC. This afternoon, the Belgian has been focused on consolidating his position and maintaining third, team-mate Hayden Paddon only 12.6 seconds behind.

Paddon really hasn’t got into the groove of the event, the Kiwi driver struggling in the conditions and unable to find a good set-up. He is however ahead of Kris Meeke, who has lost time during the day; running one car behind Tanak, he has felt hampered by his road position and simply could not do more to improve his position. This morning he also suffered two slow punctures and with only two spares and five stages to run had to manage the situation carefully.

Dani Sordo, who is never comfortable when the conditions are unpredictable, has had another difficult day and will doubtless be happy to put the penultimate round of the FIA World Rally Championship behind him. He is sixth ahead of Mads Østberg, the Norwegian starting the day with a 10 second penalty when the M-Sport mechanics had to make last-minute repairs during the morning service. Jari-Matti Latvala is hot on heels as well, and the Finn has also found the stages tricky due to his disadvantageous road position. Stephane Lefebvre and Eric Camilli round off the top 10, albeit further adrift.

The FIA WRC 2 Championship appears to be a one-horse race, Esapekka Lappi now with nearly a minute advantage over Teemu Suninen, both Finns fighting for maximum points to keep their Championship hopes alive. The rivals have claimed two stage wins apiece today and as long as Lappi can remain ahead, he will keep the title fight open until the final round in Australia. Behind Suninen, Pontus Tidemand is a close third. Martin Koci is dominating the FIA Junior/WRC 3 Championship categories, the Slovakian pulling out nearly two minutes on Simone Tempestini, the provisional FIA Junior WRC Champion. Koci won six of the day’s eight stages and looks unstoppable for his first category win this year.

Wales Rally GB – Unofficial Classification after Section 5