Epic duel between Hänninen and Mikkelsen

With three additional scratches under their belt, Juho Hänninen and Andreas Mikkelsen have still not managed to decide between themselves. The crews benefited from a drier course than the day before even if muddy sections could still trap the drivers. The two Skoda drivers continued to fight for tenths before Andreas Mikklsen missed a corner and conceded nine seconds to the Finn. The reigning champion then launched a big attack to come back to only 2??3 behind the leader with four special stages still to go.

The positions are more fixed at the rear. Jan Kopecky continues his series of times securing his third position behind the two leaders. The Czech conceded that he could not keep up with the pace of “the two crazy people in front of him”. Mathieu Arzeno continues to showcase himself at the wheel of his Peugeot 207 S2000 by occupying fourth place following Alastair Fisher's accident which occurred at the start of Redrock (SS6). The Frenchman is too far behind to hope for a regular place on the podium but still has a one-minute lead over the local drivers, which allows him to manage his race. After suffering a heavy penalty of 1:30, Craig Breen (207 S2000) takes fifth place from his compatriot Robert Barrable.