Rally Estonia 2022
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The second stage of the 2022 Rally Estonia began this Saturday July 16 with a special stage partly on a rallycross circuit. All the competitors, equipped with soft tires on a dry course, had difficulty negotiating this asphalt section.
Elfyn Evans (Toyota) still reassured himself with the best time, beating his teammate and event leader Kalle Rovanperä by one breath. The match for sixth place could well swing in favor of Takamoto Katsuta (Toyota), the Japanese only 1″6 behind Frenchman Adrien Fourmaux (M-Sport Ford).
The next special is scheduled for 9:15 a.m. French time.
Ranking of the special:
General classification :
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The mano a mano is launched. Kalle Rovanperä was beaten by his teammate and main rival for victory, Elfyn Evans, by only 6 tenths! “I did a bad special, I lost a lot of time in the corners, I will try to do better. »
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Elfyn Evans steals the best time by 1″4: “I got off to a very bad start. Then it got better, the level of grip varied during the SS. »
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Ott Tänak improves the best time by 4″1. “The feeling is decent. I need to work on the brakes. »
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Esapekka Lappi (Toyota) loses 2″5 on Thierry Neuville and admits “he can do better. »
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Thierry Neuville (Hyundai) takes the best time by 1″: “I lack grip this morning, but we have the whole day to find the optimal settings. »
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Adrien Fourmaux (M-Sport Ford) loses 6″ on Breen but above all, the Frenchman sees Takamoto Katsuta getting closer to just 1″4 in the fight for 6th place: “We changed things on the set-up, we are going to see if we need to go back, I'm not sure. »
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Takamoto Katsuta (Toyota) took the 2nd best time, 4″8 behind Craig Breen. All the drivers are riding on soft tires this morning.
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Gus Greensmith (M-Sport Ford) admits to having used notes that were “far too ambitious”. The Englishman is relegated to 11″. “There was an intersection that should probably have been taken in first gear, but I passed it in third! »
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Pierre-Louis Loubet (M-Sport Ford) finished with the 3rd provisional time, 7″3 behind his teammate Breen: “It was hard to stay clean on the rallycross circuit. I didn't drive very well, I was too careful. »
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Oliver Solberg finished 7″ behind Craig Breen. “The car is handling well, I’m trying to gain confidence. »
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The start of this special takes place on a hilly rallycross circuit. The sun is shining but the weather forecast does not rule out a risk of rain throughout the morning!
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Here is the starting order for this Saturday. Victims of an accident and a mechanical problem, Craig Breen (M-Sport Ford) and Oliver Solberg (Hyundai) will open the road.
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Hello to all rally enthusiasts! Welcome to this live stream of the 2022 Rally Estonia!
A tough day awaits the competitors in the World Rally Championship (WRC) this Saturday July 16. Nine stages of the Rally Estonia are scheduled from 8:03 a.m. French time. Follow the event here on our live text.
Kalle Rovanperä (Toyota) took the lead during the final Friday special in the rain. Elfyn Evans (Toyota) gave up under pressure and a small driving error but the Welshman will want to come back because he is only 11 seconds behind.
As for Hyundai, this Estonian Rally is not going at all as planned. If hopes were high before the start of the weekend, there no longer seemed to be any as the day ended. In difficulty on the Estonian gravel, the i20 did not meet expectations, preventing its representatives from fighting for the first places.
At the end of the 8 special stages contested this Friday, the gap with Kalle Rovanperä and Elfyn Evans is glaring. Although 3rd in his national rally, Ott Tänak is already relegated to 44″3 behind the Finnish leader. Thierry Neuville, who suffered throughout the day, is 5th but more than 1'10 from the lead. Sandwiched between the two Hyundais, Esapekka Lappi (Toyota) could take advantage of the setbacks of the South Korean machines to move up to 3rd position. Currently, he is 21″6 behind Ott Tänak but his renewed form during the 2nd loop could perhaps allow him to catch the Estonian this Saturday.
Among the Tricolores, this Friday almost ended earlier than expected for Pierre-Louis Loubet (M-Sport). Without a windshield wiper in the rain, the Corsican made a mistake when landing a jump and ended up on the door of his Ford Puma. Luckily, the accident occurred at a place where many spectators were present. They helped him get back on his 4 wheels so that he finished as best he could, more than 2 minutes late. It is now 4 minutes from Kalle Rovanperä.
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Adrien Fourmaux (M-Sport) clings to his 6th place overall but Takamoto Katsuta (Toyota) does not give up. The Japanese is in fact only 2″8 behind the Northerner. Nothing is decided for the two men.
Estonian Rally Program Step 2 (deduct one hour to obtain mainland France time):
General ranking after stage 1:
