And the first special of the day goes to Neuville who with a time of 9'01″4 beats Ogier by 9 tenths

Katsuta provisionally 3rd, 6″6 behind Ogier. The Japanese's chrono displays a time of 9'08″8

First pass of the day completed for Tänak. The Estonian ranks 2nd, 2″3 behind Ogier with a time of 9’04″6

Greensmith did not linger at the head of the special since Ogier had just set the best provisional time in 9'02″3. The Frenchman was 9″7 faster

Greensmith temporarily takes the lead with a 6″6 lead over Evans and Rovanperä. The Englishman crossed the line in 9'12

No best time in the end for Fourmaux but a good start all the same. 9'22″6 for the Frenchman, 4 seconds behind Evans and Rovanperä

4th overall, Ogier starts this SS8

Fourmaux ahead of everyone after the 2nd sector

Rovanperä sets exactly the same time as provisional leader Evans. Both rode in 9'18″6

Meanwhile, Greensmith received the starting signal

10'11″4 for the Italian Bertelli who is competing in his second rally of the year after the Arctic last February. He finished 52″8 behind Evans’ time

The day starts at M-Sport. Fourmaux is the first representative of the English structure to start SS8 this Saturday

Sordo's time was immediately beaten by Evans who signed a 9'18″6. He was 4″8 faster than the Iberian

Rovanperä takes flight. The Finn had been unfortunate the day before by getting stuck in the sand in the last special of the day when he had a golden opportunity to take the lead of the rally

Sordo signs a 9'23″4 in this SS8. This is the first chronometric reference to beat this Saturday

Ogier, Rovanperä, Sordo, Tänak, Neuville, Foumaux and Bertelli started with two hard tires and four softs. Greensmith made the opposite choice. Katsuta chose three tires of each type while Evans only opted for the hard ones

Here is the route of the 14,67 kilometers of SS8

Evans starts his turn! The Welshman also ended his day during SS3 after hitting a rock and breaking his front suspension.