Rally Australia 2018
03h
By opting for a mix of hard and medium tires, OttTänak (Toyota) took the scratch in the 4th special of the Rally Australia. The Estonian completed the 8,77km of Orara East in 4'43''5, a tenth ahead of his teammate Esapekka Lappi. Sébastien Ogier (M-Sport) and Mads Ostberg (Citroën) followed a second ahead of Jari-Matti Latvala (Toyota). Thierry Neuville (Hyundai), Hayden Paddon (Hyundai) and Teemu Suninen (M-Sport) follow 2 seconds ahead of Craig Breen (Citroën) and Elfyn Evans (M-Sport).
Each manufacturer chose a driver with a tire-oriented strategy: Mads Ostberg at Citroën, Jari-Matti Latvala at Toyota, Hayden Paddon at Hyundai and Teemu Suninen at M-Sport. The drivers on hard tires are optimistic for the next SS.
Mads Ostberg retains the lead of Rally Australia with a 4s lead over Esapekka Lappi. Jari-Matti Latvala follows his teammate at 5”1. Ott Tänak has gained two places and is in 6th place ahead of Hayden Paddon and Craig Breen who, conversely, has lost two places. Teemu Suninen remains 4th ahead of Elfyn Evans. Thierry Neuville and Sébastien Ogier complete the Top 7, separated by more than 10 seconds.
03h
Ostberg concedes a second to Tänak and maintains a lead of 4″5 over Lappi in the general classification. “It was the stage where we sacrificed a little time for the rest and the time is correct. I am satisfied with it. »
03h
Sunine drops 2s on Tänak and now has a 2s lead over his teammate Evans. “I am satisfied with my driving even if I could have gained a second. It's okay with our hard tires. »
02h
Paddon equalizes Neuville's time almost 2 seconds behind Tänak who is ahead of him by a little more than a second in the general classification. “I knew the hard tires were going to be a little less effective here. »
02h
Breen is further behind with the 6th time, 2″6 behind Tänak. The Citroën driver finds himself almost 2s behind Tänak in the general classification. “Why do you question me whenever I waste a little time? It's only 2 seconds! » The Irishman seems a little annoyed by the excessive enthusiasm of the media.
02h
Evans is still behind with 2″8 behind Tänak. The first 6 are grouped together in less than 3s. The M-Sport driver maintains a 3″ lead over Neuville. " I expected that. It's like that. »
02h
Latvala sets the 4th time, 1″3 behind his teammate Tänak. Toyota will not score a hat-trick since Ogier is ahead of the Finn by 3 tenths. The Estonian came back to 7 tenths behind his teammate. “We lost a little time but I'm only running on hard tyres. It should pay off in the next SS. »
02h
Lappi ranks one tenth behind his teammate Tänak. The Estonian remains more than 2s behind the Finn in the general classification. “It's a bit the same as this morning but I was surprised because the road was quite slippery. There was more grip this morning. It's not related to the tires but to the surface. »
02h
Tänak improves Ogier's time by one second and now has a lead of more than 13 seconds over Neuville in the general classification. His Yaris WRc is slightly damaged at the rear left. “We had contact at the start of the SS, it affects the behavior of the car. »
02h
Neuville drops a small second to Ogier who is 7″5 behind the Belgian in the general classification. “We have different tires and this is certainly the worst stage for me. » Ogier and Neuville having a mix of medium and hard tires, the difference does not seem so obvious...
02h
Ogier set a first time of 4'44"5, one second better than Lappi's scratch this morning.
02h
In terms of tires, Ostberg chose 5 hard ones. Latvala, Suninen and Paddon preferred 4 hard and 1 medium. Neuville, Tänak, Lappi and Evans opted for 3 hard and 2 medium. Ogier preferred 2 hard and 3 medium.
02h
Images of Mikkelsen's Hyundai after his exit in SS3:
SS3 @AMikkelsenRally #wrc #wrclive pic.twitter.com/ii97zGjpbK
— WRC (@OfficialWRC) November 16, 2018
02h
Ogier set off in the second pass of Orara East. Lappi was the fastest this morning with a time of 4'45"5.
02h
The teams wondered about the weather forecast for this afternoon. Forecasts remain uncertain for the second passage.
02h
The crews are preparing to compete in the second pass of the 1st stage of the Rally Australia!
