Cross-court battle to Ogier's advantage at Monza, Rossel under pressure in WRC3

Fortunately Sébastien Ogier-Julien Ingrassia and Elfyn Evans-Scott Martin are there, because this Rally of Monza 2021 would lack entertainment without the two crews Toyota Gazoo Racing.

This Saturday, November 19, the French duo and the British pair exchanged command of the event on numerous occasions. On Friday, the situation was simpler, because the seven-time world champions preferred the mountainous special stages to widen the gap while the pursuers from across the Channel appreciated the passages on the Autodromo Nazionale of Monza.

The second stage therefore saw a literal game of ping-pong between the two belligerents for the world title. With forceps, the ascendancy was regained by Ogier-Ingrassia in the Italian night, by only five tenths!

« I didn't expect to lead the test this soir, explains Sébastien Ogier. On the circuit, we were rather careful and before I was losing time, especially in the gravel sections. I also take fewer risks on the circuit. I managed to ride cleanly this evening. Three more stages on Sunday with the main objective to finish and win the championship.

“The afternoon went better than the morning. This evening, I couldn't see much and that disturbed me in the braking points. The different tire choice is probably not the reason for this gap”, said Elfyn Evans.

As it stands, Sébastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia would obtain an eighth title. Elfyn Evans and Scott Martin must now bet on an incident or accident from their rivals. Indeed, even if they finished in the top 5, the French would be crowned thanks to their comfortable accounting lead upon arriving in Italy (17 points).

The third step of the podium seems secured by Dani Sordo (Hyundai). The Spaniard took advantage of modifications made to his i20 Coupe WRC to rediscover his sensations on a terrain he likes. The veteran also benefited from his teammate's accident on Saturday morning Thierry Neuville to distance the Belgian, isolated in 4th place.

Behind, almost nothing moves. Only Gus Greensmith (Ford) puts pressure on Teemu Suninen (Hyundai) in order to steal 7th position from him, but the ranking seems stable overall.

The second battle to obtain the crown takes place away from the cameras, in WRC3. In the lead with a margin of around twenty seconds following the mountainous specials on Saturday morning, Yohan Rossel (Citroën) negotiated the courses less well on the Monza circuit. The Saintéloc Racing driver, supported by the Rookie Academy, has lost his shine.

In the space of two special stages, the 26-year-old Habs was dispossessed of his first position by the stage local Crugnola (Hyundai). Worse, he only has a 2”6 margin over Kajetan Kajetanowicz (Skoda), his only rival to watch. The situation is simple: the best placed driver will be crowned because both have the same number of points.

In WRC2, Jari Huttunen (Ford) is racing. The Finn avoided the problems that affected all his rivals to finish the day one minute ahead of Andreas Mikkelsen (Skoda). M-Sport has a strong possibility of recording his first success in the category since Gus Greensmith in Turkey in 2019.

General classification :