ERC – Kopecky leads Croatia Rally, Bonnefis injured

The first day of Rally from Croatia offered rainy weather which complicated the task of the crews. Germain Bonnefis was in 12th place (third in the Production category) before going off the road in the Ucka special (SS3). Although his co-pilot Olivier Fournier escaped unhurt, the pilot was taken to hospital for examinations following back pain. The pilot Renault suffers from a fractured vertebra, but was able to come out in the evening (announced on his Twitter account).

Meanwhile, Jan Kopecky (Skoda Fabia S2000) took advantage of better weather on the second pass of the special stages to catch up after putting on the hard tires at the start. The Championship leader who will celebrate his title at the end of the weekend ended the day with a lead of almost a minute over the Subaru Impreza R4 of Andreas Aigner, first in the Production category. But the Austrian now only has a five-second lead over the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X R4 of Hermann Gassner Jr, second in the Production category. Peter Tsjoen (Skoda) follows in fourth place, more than a minute behind the top three. Robert Consani (Mégane RS N4) moved up to eighth place in his category after a cautious start.