Hashtag: Rally Sweden

Saturday morning dawned cloudless and cold! Eight stages awaited the crews today including Vargasen which included Colins Crest and would be run twice. Three stages were run in the morning followed by service at 11:40 and then the remaining five in the afternoon and evening.

First stage of the day Torntorp was won by Tanak, which allowed him to close a little on Jari-Matti in the overall positions. The big surprise was the pace that Craig showed and he was just four seconds slower than Ott in the 19km stage and this pace lifted him into third deposing Hayden.

In the following stage, Hagfors, the two leading Hyundai drivers suffered spins and Craig was the chief beneficiary from this, moving ahead of Andreas and now the lead was just four seconds. Hayden also moved ahead of Andreas into third. Ott won the stage, making it two out of two.

Now it was time for the big stage of the day, the first run through Vargasen, and Thierry won the stage by just nine tenths of a second from Ott, with Ogier showing some pace at last in third. Mads was seventh fastest, but managed a huge 42 metre jump over Colins Crest! Craig ran a very good stage, fourth fastest keeping the gap to Thierry as close as he could, just 5.9 away from the Belgian.

After that stage, the crews headed for service.

The second run of Torntorp saw Craig take the stage victory, beating Thierry by 1.3 seconds and reducing the gap to the leader! Hayden lost third to Andreas and Ott closed the gap to Jari-Matti to just five tenths of a second in their battle

Into Hagfors for the second time and Thierry struck back with a great time beating Andreas by 6.6 seconds with Craig sticking a good time on the board and staying in second overall, but the gap was now just 14 seconds. He was managing the tyres, as there was gravel appearing through the snow and ice. Kris unfortunately retired from the stage and the rally after he went off into a snowbank which clogged up the front of his car with snow, seriously affecting the cooling of the engine. After he cleaned the snow out, he got going, but then Ott tried to pass him and there was contact, resulting in the Toyota driver going off. This meant that the battle between him and Jari-Matti was over.

The second run of Vargasen was won by Thierry who was 4 seconds faster that Craig, thus increasing his lead to 18 seconds over Craig. The Belgian also took a very interesting line and landed on two wheels, the car at a 45-degree angle in the air at one point!

Mads Ostberg took the biggest jump though this year over Colins Crest going 42 metres, living life on the edge!

The penultimate stage, back at Karlstad was won by Ott from Mads, with Latvala in third. Craig had also set a good time, consolidating second overall, ahead of the two Hyundai pilots, Andreas and Hayden.

Moving to the last stage of the day the Torsby Sprint stage, a short one to complete day two. Thierry won the stage and increased his lead to 22.7 seconds over Craig Breen. Hyundai duo Andreas and Hayden remain in third and fourth, although the young Kiwi lost time in the final stage, after getting stuck in a snowbank.

Overall Standings- End of Saturday

1. Neuville/Gilsoul (Hyundai i20 WRC) 2:23:23.8
2. Breen / Martin (Citroën C3 WRC) + 22.7
3. Mikkelsen/Jaeger (Hyundai i20 WRC) + 32.0
4. Paddon/Marshall (Hyundai i20 WRC) + 48.6
5. Ostberg/Eriksen (Citroën C3 WRC) + 56.8
6. Lappi / Ferm (Toyota Yaris WRC) + 1:05.8
7. Latvala / Anttila (Toyota Yaris WRC) + 2:03.3
8. Suninen/Markkula (Ford Fiesta WRC) + 2:20.5
9. Tänak/Jarveoja (Toyota Yaris WRC) + 3:41.3
10.  Ogier / Ingrassia (Ford Fiesta WRC) + 4:24.9

Let’s hear then from the drivers.

Hyundai Motorsport

Thierry Neuville

“Things have gone pretty much to plan today and we can be pleased with our day overall. We had a bit of a stressful start this morning after a technical issue in the first stage and a spin in the second, which cost us some time. After that, though, we were able to increase the gap stage by stage. In the afternoon, we took six tyres compared to Craig’s five so we knew we’d lose a bit initially with the extra weight, but we then had fresher tyres for later in the loop. We gave a big push through SS13 and SS14, as we’re involved in a very close fight. We scored more stage wins, which was a nice reward for our efforts. I actually touched the inside bank of the Colin’s Crest jump, which created some exciting images for the fans. I think Colin himself would have called that ‘a little moment’ but we were still able to register the fastest time. We took things a bit steadier in the final stages and we are now prepared to fight for victory on Sunday morning.”

Andreas Mikkelsen

“It has been a day of two halves. The morning loop could have been better. We had a spin in SS10, the second stage of the day, and lost around 15 seconds. We touched a bank and had to reverse out, which was easier said than done, as it was a narrow section of road. We made some set-up adjustments at lunchtime service to find a similar feeling to yesterday, making the car less stiff in a bid to find more traction. The afternoon was a lot cleaner as a result with some improved times. Hayden has been pushing, so we have done the same to try and defend our third place. There is an almost ten-second time deficit to Craig, with three stages left on Sunday, but we’ll give it a good go. It’s not impossible.”

Hayden Paddon

“Not quite the day we wanted but we are still enjoying ourselves and doing the best we can. We started the morning loop knowing that we would be playing a waiting game. The way that the car has been set up for my driving meant we had to find a compromise between my own confidence and the outright performance in those first stages. The wider lines on the roads in the afternoon played more to my strengths, so we had to be patient and wait for the stages to come to us. We were definitely more comfortable to push in the repeat loop. It was fantastic to see so many fans enjoying the stages, especially through Colin’s Crest. Unfortunately, we lost a little time stuck in a snow bank on the final stage, but we are still in a good position to push on tomorrow.”

Citroen Abu Dhabi WRT

Craig Breen

“I’m over the moon with my day and delighted with the pace we’ve shown. It’s something new for me to be fighting at the front in the world championship but you quickly get a taste for it! The afternoon was incredible for us, even though I couldn’t keep pace with Thierry right to the end. You can count on me to fight every step of the way to hold onto this second place.”

Mads Østberg

“Given that I’m still working out how best to set up the C3 WRC, I have to be pleased with what we have done so far. Rather than attempting to change everything in the middle of the race, which is always risky, we kept to the basic set-up defined in testing. I’m now trying to improve in my handling of the car as we complete more stages.”

Kris Meeke

“Initially, I thought I was only going to lose about twenty seconds in this snow bank, but when I got going again, the car had no power. Snow had got into the engine and damaged the turbo. We had been focusing on getting tenth place up to that point and it seems like a heavy price to pay for such a minor mistake. Fresh snow forecast for tomorrow and we’ll be opening the road, so unfortunately, we don’t even have a realistic chance of getting any points on the Power Stage.”

M-Sport Ford WRT

Teemu Suninen

“I tried to change my driving style a bit this morning but it didn’t work out so well. The afternoon was better, but we still have some more to learn before we can be on the pace of the guys at the front. The main thing for us is to drive cleanly and get the experience, and there are still three more stages where we need to keep doing that tomorrow.”

Sébastien Ogier

“We can be satisfied with what we’ve done in the car today as we’ve made no mistakes and driven pretty cleanly all day. I tried to be as fast as I could with the conditions I had, but that’s all we could do from this position on the road.

“If you have a look at the top-three in the championship and where they are this weekend, it’s clear that none of us had a chance. There’s nothing wrong with the cars, it’s just that in these conditions it is impossible to compensate as the disadvantage is too big.”

Elfyn Evans

“It’s been a pretty tough weekend for us and it wouldn’t go amiss to salvage some Power Stage points tomorrow. Our road position won’t make it easy as the stages are getting faster and faster with every car, but we’ll give it our best shot.”

Toyota Gazoo WRT

Jari-Matti Latvala  
“This morning was going well: I felt good and was enjoying the driving. This afternoon however the car was not behaving well at all. The front differential was not working correctly and I was losing a lot of time, but we are changing the transmission in service so this should be sorted out for tomorrow. Then I’m sure the confidence will come, and if I am feeling good on the start line before the Power Stage then there’s a chance we can score some points there.”

Ott Tänak  
“Overall the pace was quite good today and it was quite a lot more enjoyable. This morning the grip was much more consistent: more like a rally should be. The car was working perfectly in these conditions and it felt good to drive. This afternoon it was as tricky as I expected: it was more or less the same as yesterday, but we had a few more cars ahead of us so a few more lines to follow. We will try to do our best tomorrow and see what is possible on the Power Stage.”

Esapekka Lappi 
“It’s been a good day. We continued the same pace as yesterday, managing to do top five times on almost every stage, which is quite good, and it has been pretty consistent. We made some small changes in service which made the car better for the rutted roads. I don’t think I could have done better times because the road was getting cleaner car-by-car. We have a good fight going on with Östberg: for sure I want to pass him tomorrow.”

Well, tomorrow sees three stages and 51km of action. Can Thierry win? It’s certainly his to lose. Craig has driven superbly all weekend, and which of the other Hyundai drivers will finish on the podium?

Well, what a day! At the start of the day, we saw more snowfall, which would lead to lots of problems for championship leader Seb in his Fiesta WRC as he acted as a snow plough.

Overnight leader Ott increased his lead by winning the first stage of the day, Hof-Finnskog, 21km of really tricky snow-covered stages, whilst Latvala, who started the day in second place would drop down into fifth place.       Those to benefit were Mads, Andreas (who lost his rear bumper in the stage) and Thierry. Just ten seconds covered the top six positions.

The following stage, Svullrya, was won by Thierry and this moved him from fourth into first place with Lappi also jumping ahead to third overall.

Röjden, the final stage of the morning loop saw some drama for Kris and Elfyn. They both hit something at the edge of the stage and suffered damage to wheels, with Kris getting a broken wheel and Elfyn suffering a puncture. Andreas won the stage and moved into second overall, whilst Citroen duo, Mads and Craig both moved up as well. Tanak dropped right back to seventh place after a disastrous stage. He was pretty angry about it.

The crews headed back to service for the midday break, with Seb and Elfyn looking to get some settings that would make the cars handle better.

The afternoon stages got underway with Hof-Finnskog just before 2pm and Hayden won it, with Craig second and Lappi in the Toyota third, which meant that the young Finn displaced Andreas from second overall. Also, with such a good time in the stage, Hayden lifted himself into sixth and was now just twelve seconds from the lead currently held by Thierry.

The following stage, Röjden was won by Craig who said it wasn’t a perfect run, but clearly good enough not only to win the stage, but also to move into third overall at the expense of Mads in the other Citroen.

Last stage then, Torsby, and Hayden flew though setting such a good time that it meant he and Seb jumped into third overall ahead of Craig and Mads, and we now had a Hyundai one-two-three!

So, what a day! Two different leaders and multiple changes in the top positions as well, Friday had it all.

Here’s the comments from the drivers.

Hyundai Motorsport

Thierry Neuville

“What a day! We have just tried to stay focused on the job and doing what we can from our middle road position. We set ourselves the goal being consistent and fast, not making any mistakes. The car has felt good, the settings were spot on and I have felt comfortable. The cars at the front have suffered a bit in the snowy conditions. Every time I pushed I felt that I was creating faster lines for the guys behind to follow, so it was a tricky balance. To have finished the day with all three Hyundai i20 Coupe WRCs in the top-three is a good morale boost, but we know there is a long way to go. We are trying to fight for victory here, but we’ll have to see what we can do tomorrow.”

Andreas Mikkelsen

“We have made a good start and for sure it’s great to see all three Hyundai Motorsport crews in the top-three at the end of Friday. We used the morning loop to build our confidence and rhythm. We were able to get better stage-by-stage, culminating in a stage win before lunchtime service. I have been really pleased with our progression. Of course, there is no question that the guys first on the road have a disadvantage, but it’s still tricky even for us running later. We took things a bit carefully in places. We have one notch in reserve if we need it, but that brings its own risks. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed driving at home with the stages in Norway today, and I hope that support can see us to a good result come Sunday afternoon.”

Hayden Paddon

“It is great to be back for our first WRC event of 2018. Our objective today was to get the rhythm back. The conditions were not easy. We had to be conscious of keeping the car in the lines, and adapting both the car and my driving to suit the stages. The ruts became really pronounced in the afternoon loop. If you go outside of the lines, you become a passenger in your own car, so we had to pull back a bit at times. The road position has helped but we wanted to have a sensible approach to the day, and a clean run, which we have had. There is room for improvement, but the positions are encouraging and there’ll be more to give tomorrow.”

Citroen Abu Dhabi WRT

Kris Meeke

“It was a very difficult day for us, but we made it to the end. We weren’t very far off the pace of Tänak and Latvala, but I wasn’t comfortable enough nor prepared to risk everything, so I didn’t try to overcompensate. We won’t have a great road position tomorrow either, but we’ll try and adopt a sensible approach and keep any eye on what happens ahead of us. We’ll be ready to take advantage, if an opportunity to move up the leaderboard presents itself.”

Craig Breen

“I knew that I had a good road position today, but I’m really pleased that it went so well for me. My C3 WRC worked really well. Tomorrow will be an interesting day! We’ll have to see what happens with the weather, because there was already quite a lot of gravel showing through the ice this afternoon. When we did recce, tomorrow’s stages were in poorer condition than those we did today, so the conditions may be more difficult on the second pass.”

Mads Østberg

“It wasn’t an easy day, but I’m very happy. When we got here, I didn’t expect to be on the pace so quickly. This afternoon, the road conditions were really different to those we had in testing, and my set-up wasn’t ideal. But I fought hard and I also learned a lot about the C3 WRC. I have high hopes that this will help me to be more competitive for the rest of the rally. Especially as I have always been more comfortable on the Swedish stages than the ones in Norway, so I can’t wait to get back out there tomorrow!”

M-Sport Ford WRT

Teemu Suninen

“I’ve been quite happy with our performance today. There are still some things that we need to improve for tomorrow as we’re still not on the pace to fight with the leading cars. It’s been okay, and I need to get the experience, but I would still like to show an improvement and do a bit better tomorrow.”

Elfyn Evans

“It’s not been the best of days out there. I think it’s fair to say that we were struggling for some pace this morning, but we were pretty unfortunate to pick up the puncture. Quite a few of the top cars hit the same stone, so it was just our bad luck. But to be honest, we were still struggling after that so we’ll make some changes tonight and see what we can do tomorrow.”

Sébastien Ogier

“It’s been a difficult day, but one that we couldn’t do anything about. Opening the road, we knew that the conditions would be a challenge – especially on the second pass – but it was worse than any of us had expected.

“We tried to push a couple of times, but in these conditions it’s a fight just to stay on the road. And behind, everyone is taking the same line and it’s getting faster and faster with every car.

“We know that the conditions will not be any easier tomorrow, but we’re so far behind that there’s nothing more to lose – we just have to go out there and see what happens.”

Toyota Gazoo WRT

Jari-Matti Latvala

“It has been a really demanding day. Firstly, we had the fresh snow this morning and then on the second pass through the stages we had to follow the narrower lines of the historic cars and it was extremely slippery outside of those lines. I could not really push any more than I did, but that’s the way it is. I have been quite happy with the car and tomorrow will hopefully be a more positive situation for us.”

Ott Tänak

“Today has been really tough. There were some extremely difficult conditions, with a lot of snow. It looks nice from the outside but on the road it’s quite a struggle and it is difficult to find any grip. It would be nice if we could be last on the road tomorrow but unfortunately the road position will be the same as today, so it will be a similarly hard job. I think in the end we need to survive and to collect as many points as possible. Let’s do the best we can.”

Esapekka Lappi

“The conditions were quite tricky. The second loop was even tougher than the first: it was very easy to make a mistake because the ruts were very deep and there was a lot of loose snow. I kissed a snow bank with the front of the car and got too much snow in the air filter, so I was lacking power in the last five kilometres and we lost half a minute. We are still in the game with two days to go though, and I think that there were also many positives today. I was a bit surprised with how good my speed was, so I just need to take that feeling with me for tomorrow and enjoy it.”

Overall Classification- Friday

1. Thierry Neuville / Nicolas Gilsoul (Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC) 1:16:13.1
2. Andreas Mikkelsen / Anders Jaeger (Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC) +4.9
3. Hayden Paddon / Sebastian Marshall (Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC) +12.1
4. Craig Breen / Scott Martin (Citroen C3 WRC) +12.6
5. Mads Østberg / Torstein Eriksen (Citroen C3 WRC) +13.2
6. Teemu Suninen / Mikko Markkula (Ford Fiesta WRC) +29.6
7. Esapekka Lapp / Janne Ferme (Toyota Yaris WRC) +38.5
8. Jari-Matti Latvala / Miikka Anttila (Toyota Yaris WRC) +1:06.2
9. Ott Tänak / Martin Järveoja (Toyota Yaris WRC) +1:29.0
10. Kris Meeke / Paul Nagle (Citroen DS3 WRC) +1:43.6
11. Elfyn Evans / Daniel Barritt (Ford Fiesta WRC) +2:41.3
12. Sébastien Ogier / Julien Ingrassia (Ford Fiesta WRC) +2:48.8

Tomorrow sees eight stages and the amazing Colins Crest which is in Vargasen and someone will try I believe to beat the record distance, which is currently 45 metres!

Enjoy!