“This morning we had perfect conditions, we couldn’t have wished for better. But I’m glad tonight is over. It was absolutely mad in the fog and I couldn’t see a thing in places,” he said.Ogier was a relieved man. He drove cautiously, knowing victory for Evans could be enough to deny Neuville and Ott Tänak the points they need to take the title battle to next month’s final round in Australia. But the penultimate Aberhirnant stage was engulfed in fog and Ogier hit a stone, puncturing his Fiesta’s front left wheel and damaging the brakes. The Frenchman worked furiously to remove the brake disc before easing through the final test. “I did the stage with only three brakes, it’s a miracle we’re here now. We couldn’t push because we had no power on the brakes. We had to brake early all the time,” he said.
Sebastien Ogier removes a front brake disc before the final stage of the day in Wales.
“We probably had the most fog. I was trying but it was impossible to see. It’s so disappointing. We’ve been fighting hard and never given up and then you get this,” he said.Tänak fared even worse in the fog. He plunged from third to sixth, although just 13sec cover five cars behind Evans. Jari-Matti Latvala was fourth, 4.1sec adrift of Neuville, as he finally began to get on top of the traction and understeer issues that have blighted him all weekend. Andreas Mikkelsen was fifth in another i20, the Norwegian 5.9sec further back. Behind Tänak was Kris Meeke, who dropped back after a messy day which included two overshoots and an engine stall in his Citroën C3.
Kiwi Hayden Paddon lies eighth in his Hyundai i20 WRC.
SUBSCRIBE BELOW TO READ THE FULL STORY
Love rallying? You’ve come to the right place.
Our team share the passion for rallying.
A subscription to RallySport Magazine gives you superior rally content from Australia, New Zealand and around the world – with deals, offers and experiences nobody can match. Our team is dedicated to providing an unrivalled experience that shares, supports and promotes the sport of rallying.
BASIC MEMBERSHIP
$79.99 / yearSign up now
Sign up now$7.49 / monthSign up now
Sign up nowPREMIUM MEMBERSHIP
$171.00 / yearSign up now
Sign up now$14.25 / monthSign up now
Sign up now
