Dani Sordo and Sébastien Ogier shared fastest time through Thursday night’s opening street stage at YPF Rally Argentina.
A spectacular new night-time street stage in Cordoba city kicks off the YPF Rally Argentina action. It features several donuts at roundabouts and a jump to entertain what are expected to be large crowds.
The pair could not be split through the 1.50km asphalt test in Cordoba, watched by huge crowds, while Ott Tänak was just a tenth of a second further back in third.
The drivers recced the test in golf buggies and Spaniard Sordo was on course for the win in his Hyundai i20. But Ogier, the last of the big-name drivers to start, matched the time in his Volkswagen Polo R, despite a mistake.
“I lost a good second with a mistake after the jump,” said Ogier. “It was great to be here tonight, there were a lot of people and it was a good atmosphere. The stage was spectacular and it was good to be equal fastest, but things really start tomorrow.”
Behind Tänak’s Ford Fiesta RS were Hyundai duo Thierry Neuville and Hayden Paddon, with Lorenzo Bertelli completing the top six.
Jari-Matti Latvala lost several seconds after overshooting a junction, while both Mads Østberg and Andreas Mikkelsen had similar escapes. Eric Camilli had a launch control problem at the start in his Fiesta R5 and Marcos Ligato stalled his DS 3 at the same point.
Hayden Paddon had earlier been fastest in the pre-event shakedown, more than a second quicker than his nearest rival.
This fourth round of the FIA World Rally Championship continues tomorrow when drivers face eight more tests covering 150.08km.
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