MotoGP
09h
Thierry Neuville (Hyundai) took the scratch by completing the 24,88km of Svullrya, SS3 of the Swedish Rally which is the longest course of the event, in 13'16"4. Esapekka Lappi (Toyota) was the closest, 1”6 behind. Andreas Mikkelsen (Hyundai) followed six seconds ahead of the Citroën C3 WRCs of Craig Breen and Mads Ostberg. Jari-Matti Latvala (Toyota) lost nine seconds to the Belgian. Ott Tänak (Toyota) is the first driver more than ten seconds behind. The Estonian preceded Hayden Paddon (Hyundai) and Teemu Suninen (M-Sport) by a few tenths. The Ford drivers remain behind since Elfyn Evans and Sébastien Ogier are more than 18 seconds behind Kris Meeke (Citroën).
Thierry Neuville takes the lead of Rally Sweden with a 2" lead over Ott Tänak. Esapekka Lappi completes the provisional podium at 7”4 with one second ahead of Andreas Mikkelsen. Mads Ostberg follows at seven seconds. Jari-Matti Latvala is now 3 seconds behind the leader of the race, ahead of Craig Breen by two seconds. Hayden Paddon and Teemu Suninen are more than 11 seconds behind the new leader. Kris Meeke is 17 seconds ahead of Sébastien Ogier and Elfyn Evans.
09h
Ostberg signs the 5th provisional time, 7″8 behind Neuville’s scratch. The Norwegian slips to 5th place, 7s from the head of the race. “It's difficult because we lack grip at times, especially when braking where I had difficulty reducing my speed. »
09h
Evans: “I didn't think my stage was bad but the time wasn't good. I have to do better in the next one. »
09h
Paddon signs the 7th provisional time, 10”6 behind the benchmark. The Hyundai driver is more than 17 seconds behind his teammate Neuville in the general classification. “I try to attack but you have to follow the trajectories. I need to gain confidence. »
09h
Mikkelsen: “I am satisfied with my driving. We can attack and gain time if we are willing to take risks. There is still a long way to go. »
09h
Suninen finished with the 7th provisional time, almost 11s from the provisional scratch. The M-Sport driver is almost 18s behind Neuville in the general classification.
09h
Breen signs the 4th provisional time, being 7 seconds behind Neuville. The Citroën driver finds himself 13″5 from the lead of the race.
09h
Mikkelsen sets the 3rd provisional time, 6″1 behind his teammate Neuville. The Norwegian is less than 6s from the lead in the general classification.
09h
Neuville: “The car works very well. I enjoyed every turn. I think my time is good. »
09h
Lappi is the closest to Neuville with 1”6 behind. The Toyota driver is less than 2 seconds behind his teammate Tänak in the general classification.
09h
Evans is the slowest after Ogier, more than 18 seconds behind Neuville. The Welshman is 7 tenths closer to his teammate in the general classification. The M-Sport drivers are in difficulty at the start of the event.
09h
Meeke set the 4th provisional time, 13″8 behind Neuville’s provisional scratch. The Citroën driver is 14s behind Latvala in the general classification.
09h
Neuville improves the benchmark with a time of 13'16″4. The Belgian is doing well since he is ahead of Latvala by more than 9s. The Hyundai driver takes the lead of the Swedish Rally with a 2″ lead.
09h
Latvala did better than his teammate Tänak with a second ahead of the Estonian by signing a time of 13'25″6. The Finn is less than 9s behind the leader of Rally Sweden.
09h
Ogier: “It’s not good. We started by stalling at the start and then had to face fresh snow. I had no grip and I struggled a lot. »
09h
Tänak improved by around ten seconds with a time of 13'26″6. The Frenchman is now 25s behind the Estonian in the general classification.
09h
Ogier signs a first reference in 13'36″5. His time should be beaten quickly.
09h
At the end of SS2, reigning World RX champion Kristoffersson (Skoda) occupies 10th place in the RC2s.
09h
Latvala set the record for the special last year with a time of 12'52″3.
The record for Swullrya (12m52.3s) was posted by @JariMattiWRC (Toyota Yaris WRC/Michelin) in 2017 #WRC #RallySweden pic.twitter.com/PykyvCpko9
— Michelin Motorsport (@Michelin_Sport) 16th February 2018
09h
Ogier is now more than 6s behind Tänak in the 2nd intermediate. Latvala and Meeke are also ahead of the Frenchman in the 1st split with more than 4 seconds ahead of the Championship leader.
