The Fords already dropped!

Without much surprise, the duo Loeb / Elena once again showed herself to be dominant throughout this first day by achieving all the reference times, apart from that of the last special, contested in the rain, set by Dani Sordo. The crew of the No. 4 Citroën C1 therefore made an excellent start to this Cypriot round, and already has a comfortable lead in the general classification.

“Everything is going pretty well for us,” commented Sébastien Loeb after the third special. “We made good times while enjoying a clean road. I'm doing my best to widen the gap even if we're going slower than on a rally typically asphalt. I don't want to establish a strategy for tomorrow, I'm just trying to get as far ahead as possible before hitting the dirt. », added the Alsatian.

Indeed, it is easy to note that the Citroëns have clearly gained the upper hand over the Ford armada in these particular conditions, in particular thanks to a better development of the car's set-up and the decision not to change. tires after the first long special, to benefit from better grip in the second.

The No. 4 C2 of Dani Sordo and Marc Marti ranked just behind that of Loeb and Elena almost systematically, while Mikko Hirvonen, unable to find the right feeling with his Focus, kept losing big seconds to finally find himself behind. one minute from the overall leader. His teammate, Jari-Matti Latvala, doesn't do much better and finds himself fourth in the standings, ahead of Petter Solberg and Sébastien Ogier. Evgeny Novikov and Matthew Wilson complete the Top 8.

This therefore bodes well for the five-time world champion, who could win the 50th victory of his career here, even if tomorrow morning he will have to sweep the road for the others. However, further showers are likely to fall on the island of Cyprus, which would considerably reduce the advantage of his pursuers and increase his chances a little more.

“On Saturday I will be the first to set off, but if it rains, it won't be too detrimental,” declared a rather optimistic Sébastien at the finish of the last special.

We don't really find the same serenity in his rival, who is very worried at the start of this decisive second day: “It's a bad start, the situation is much worse than I could have thought. We knew the Citroëns would be fast but not this fast. I have to adapt my driving, I have to attack more. I hope that tomorrow it will be dry, that’s my only hope from now on!” said Hirvonen.

Five events in total are planned for tomorrow, which will start at 7:43 a.m. French time?

First day ranking:

1. Loeb / Elena Citroën C4 48:44.4
2. Sordo / Marti Citroën C4 + 22.5
3. Hirvonen / Lehtinen Ford Focus + 42.0
4. Latvala / Anttila Ford Focus + 46.4
5. P. Solberg / Mills Citroën Xsara +1:19.3
6. Ogier / Ingrassia Citroën C4 +1:28.5
7. Novikov / Moscatt Citroën C4 +2:01.8
8. Wilson / Martin Ford Focus +2:03.2
9. Rautenbach / Barritt Citroën C4 +2:24.9
10. Villagra / Perez Companc Ford Focus +2:33.8