Monte-Carlo Rally 2017
12h
Despite going off the road slightly, Sébastien Ogier (Ford) gained a little more than 7 seconds from Thierry Neuville (Hyundai) in SS12 at La-Bâtie-Montsaléon – Faye. The Belgian finished 15 seconds behind Elfyn Evans (Ford) who completed the 16,78km in 8'56''7. Ott Tänak (Ford) finished more than 6 seconds behind his teammate, but the Estonian was able to resolve his mechanical problems on the link.
Craig Breen (DS 3) lost 15 seconds to Dani Sordo (Hyundai) who finished 11”6 off the scratch.
Thierry Neuville maintains a lead of 51 seconds over Sébastien Ogier. Ott Tänak is now 39s behind Sébastien Ogier. Jari-Matti Latvala (Toyota) and Dani Sordo still complete the top five ahead of Craig Breen (DS 3).
12h
Lefebvre is the slowest with 41 seconds behind the reference. “This is a difficult step for us. We are still looking for good settings. »
12h
Tänak finished one second behind Tänak and dropped 8s to Ogier who came back to 50s behind the leader. “I took the snow tires in this special, it wasn't the best choice. We still have a good lead, but the rally is still long. »
12h
Ogier is the closest to Evans with 7″8 behind despite a slight off-road trip without consequences for the M-Sport driver. “We knew it was an open area. I had understeer. I was too slow in the first pass and I wanted to attack. »
12h
Tänak took the 3rd provisional time, 14 seconds behind Evans. The M-Sport driver regains 4s in Latvala and protects his place on the provisional podium well. “We were able to resolve our concerns on the connection. »
12h
Latvala signs the 3rd provisional time, 16s behind Evans and 4s behind Sordo. The Toyota driver remains in 4th place. “I maybe attacked a little too much, I made a few small mistakes, but we did well. »
12h
Sordo ranks 11”6 but takes 15s from Breen who finds himself 47s behind the Hyundai driver. “It would have been better to start on slicks because the roads dried well, but I am quite satisfied with my time. »
12h
Breen was disrupted on the first pass after losing radio contact with his team, preventing him from knowing which tires to put on for the stages.
12h
Breen: “The roads are getting drier and drier, the conditions are complicated. »
12h
Breen drops 26″6 on Evans’ time. The Citroën driver no longer seems to have the pace to catch up with Sordo on a regular basis.
12h
Evans set a first time of 8'56″7, almost 20 seconds better than his previous time. “We have to see what the others will do. It's still tricky in places. It's a difficult stage. »
12h
Evans took off in the special. The Welshman scored his first scratch in Monte-Carlo on this course earlier in the morning.
12h
The start of the 12km SS16,87 La-Bâtie-Montsaléon – Faye will be contested from 12:08 p.m. Evans was fastest in the first pass in 9’15”2.
