Pontus Tidemand (Skoda Fabia R5) set the best time ahead of Ole Christian Veiby (Skoda Fabia R5), and is 5″8 behind the latter in the general classification.

Third in WRC-2, Gus Greensmith (Ford Fiesta R5) was stopped in SS8.

ℹ @GreensmithGus and @craigparry2 are stopped on SS8. Both are okay and more info to follow as we have it… # WRC2 #RallyPoland

- M-Sport (@MSportLtd) June 30, 2017

Thierry Neuville (Hyundai) increased the pace again on SS8 of the Rally Poland. The Belgian driver was the fastest in 10'03"3 over the 19,60 km on the menu in this sector and is 1"2 ahead of his teammate Dani Sordo. One time ahead in the first partial, Teemu Suninen (Ford) finally set the third time, 3″4 behind Neuville, and ahead of Hayden Paddon (Hyundai), 4th at 3″9.

Ott Tänak (Ford), tied for fourth in the SS with Paddon, took advantage of the opportunity to take control of the rally, after having beaten previous leader Jari-Matti Latvala (Toyota) by 3″3. The Estonian is now ahead of the Finn by a second at the head of the race.

Thierry Neuville is in third place, 1″7 behind Tänak, leaving the Belgian in immediate contact with first place. Sébastien Ogier (Ford), on the other hand, has let go slightly, since the M-Sport driver retains his fourth place but 27″ behind his teammate Tänak.

Paddon and Sordo placed their Hyundai i20s in 5th and 6th places ahead of Teemu Suninen (Ford) who took the advantage over Juho Hänninen (Toyota). Stéphane Lefebvre (Citroën) passed Mads Ostberg (Ford) for 9th place.  

Suninen (Ford) had the best start, but the debutant in the premier category finally failed with the third fastest time of the SS, 3″4 behind Thierry Neuville, who will secure a new scratch on this Rally of Poland.

Stéphane Lefebvre (Citroën) signs the 6th provisional time, but admits that his C3 is too low on these muddy roads.

While Mads Ostberg (Ford) finished in 10'14″8, 7th provisional time at 11″5, Teemu Suninen (Ford) signed a fantastic first partial, 4″8 ahead of Neuville. The Finn could sign a second consecutive scratch.

Craig Breen and Andreas Mikkelsen (Citroën) finish with their C3s. The Irishman sets the 10th fastest time, 18″9 behind Neuville. “I have a really terrible feeling, to be honest. I am constantly, constantly afraid of going out. It's not pleasant on roads like this. » emphasizes Breen.

Mikkelsen is more energetic, with the 5th provisional time 5″2 behind the Belgian driver. “We are making the suspension work better. When the car doesn't surprise me, and the grip is more constant, I return to normal driving. »

“We tried to raise the car before the stage, but the shock absorbers were covered in mud and we couldn't do it. » relates Hänninen.

Juho Hänninen (Toyota) is further behind on this SS8, in 10’18″4, 7th provisional time for the Finn.

Third provisional time for Hayden Paddon (Hyundai), tied with Ott Tänak (Ford) in 10’07”2.

Elfyn Evans (Ford) concedes 16″7 on Neuville on this SS8.

Sordo highlights better conditions, allowing him to “steer and control the car. »

Second provisional time for Dani Sordo (Hyundai) who is more incisive in this second passage of the day. The Spaniard failed 1″2 behind his teammate Neuville, still the best time of this SS8 in 10’03″3.

“I was too afraid of the slippery places because I had a scare in the previous SS. I was too careful. » admits Latvala. The top 3 Tänak – Latvala – Neuville are now separated by 1″7 overall.

“Thierry attacked. I tried not to take any risks. It's hard to understand what's going on. I'm happy like that. » emphasizes Tänak.

Ott Tänak (Ford) fails behind Neuville (Hyundai) at the finish of SS8. 3″9 behind for the Estonian from M-Sport. The latter sees Neuville return to 1″7 overall. Ogier is 27″ behind Tänak.

Neuville logically improves Ogier's time to 10'03"3, or 13"5 better than the Frenchman. “I attacked but it wasn’t easy. You have to make your own line because there is a lot of mud and you lose a lot of grip. »

Latvala (Toyota) is much slower than Neuville (Hyundai) and Tänak (Ford) in the first partial. The Finn only had a 2″ lead overall before this SS3.

Tänak (Ford) is even faster than Neuville in the first partial. The first drivers on the road seem handicapped on this second passage, notably with the stagnant water. Ogier finished in 10’16”8 after 19,60 km. “On the first one, maybe I was too defensive, but here I tried everything. It's impossible. Of course I will lose time, but I attacked as much as I could. »