Classic
18h
Kris Meeke (Citroën) took the scratch in the 26,05km Duarte-Derramadero, SS2 of the Rally of Mexico, with a time of 17'08"9. Dani Sordo (Hyundai) was the closest, 2″8 behind, while Sébastien Loeb (Citroën) completed the top three for his first real SS in three years. The nine-time WRC champion precedes his compatriot Sébastien Ogier (M-Sport), author of a real performance by occupying second place behind Thierry Neuville (Hyundai) on the road. The Championship leader was only able to set the tenth fastest time, more than 18 seconds behind the benchmark.
Kris Meeke took the lead in Rally Mexico with a 3'8 lead over Dani Sordo. Sébastien Ogier remains on the provisional podium, ahead of Sébastien Loeb by a handful of tenths, who remains less than six seconds behind his teammate. Ott Tänak (Toyota) completes the Top 5 ahead of Elfyn Evans (M-Sport), Andreas Mikkelsen (Hyundai), Jari-Matti Latvala (Toyota) and Thierry Neuville. Teemu Suninen (M-Sport) completes the Top 10 ahead of Esapekka Lappi (Toyota).
18h
Loeb sets the 3rd time of the special, 4″3 behind Meeke’s scratch. The Alsatian is ahead of his compatriot Ogier by 2″3 and moves up to 4th place in the ranking.
18h
Loeb was 4″8 behind Meeke at the 3rd intermediate.
18h
Sordo is closest to Meeke with 2″8 behind. The Hyundai driver is also the closest to the Citroën in the general classification, playing less than 4 seconds behind the provisional leader. “I tried to keep the tires. I was a little hesitant when landing a jump. »
18h
Suninen finished with the 7th provisional time, more than 14 seconds behind Meeke's benchmark.
18h
Loeb is 3″6 behind his teammate Meeke in the second split.
18h
Evans failed 6″8 behind Meeke and 2 tenths behind Ogier. “I didn’t have any big problems. It went well. »
18h
Meeke is the only one not to have brought 5 soft tires. The Northern Irishman opted for 3 soft and 2 hard.
18h
Meeke improved Ogier’s time by 6″6. “We felt the sweep in the second part but not at the start of the SS. »
18h
Loeb started SS2. The Alsatian is ahead of Ogier's time.
18h
Mikkelsen finished 6″4 behind. This is the 3rd provisional time. “If we attack too hard, we leave the trajectory. It's hard to understand, but it was a pretty good stage. »
18h
Good performance from Tänak who is closest to Ogier with 1″9 behind Ogier. “It was very slippery. I had to drive slowly. »
17h
Lappi is also slower and the gap is significant. The Toyota driver fails 20s behind Ogier's time. “I rode badly. There are a few things that don't look good. I lack confidence. »
17h
Latvala drops 7″5 to Ogier at the end of SS2. “The car lost power throughout the stage. However, the engine had torque at the start. Maybe I also need to improve my driving. »
17h
Ogier regains more than 12 seconds from Neuville and is now ahead of the Belgian in the general classification by around ten seconds. “I couldn’t find a trajectory. The others will have a better situation. »
17h
Ogier now has a lead of almost 11 seconds over Neuville after the 14th km. Sweeping is already costly for the leader.
17h
Neuville signs a first reference in 19'34″3. The Belgian is currently the leader after his scratch in the opening super special staged the day before. " It is slippery. I tried to do my best, but I wasn't 100% comfortable. »
17h
Overview of the SS2 route currently underway:
The SS2 is now live with @thierryneuville into the stageDuarte' is a varied stage, ranging from twisty to fast, but it is technical from start to finish #wrc #RallyMexico pic.twitter.com/pOtqkDK4dd
— Michelin Motorsport (@Michelin_Sport) March 9, 2018
17h
The route begins with a portion last used 5 years ago in the opposite direction. The road starts out wide before getting narrower. It also has several jumps.
17h
Neuville took the start of the 26,05km long special. The Hyundai driver sweeps the road for his opponents.
