Takamoto Katsuta leads the Rally of Portugal, the top 6 narrowed down to 9 seconds!

Ranking Rally of Portugal after SS5:

• It's rare, but Takamoto Katsuta (Toyota) achieved a perfect first half-stage in Portugal. The Japanese set a better time in SS2 to take the lead.
• No accidents occurred in Rally1, and the racing conditions are ideal, which explains why the classification is so competitive. The first 6 drivers are held in just 9 seconds! For his return to the Toyota, the outgoing double champion Kalle Rovanperä slips between the Hyundai de Thierry Neuville et Ott Tänak in 3th place.
• This is his very first world rally of the year, and after an absence of almost a half-year, we did not expect Dani Sordo to have such a celebration. The Hyundai Motorsport driver claimed two fastest times and is in 5th place, just behind Seb Ogier.
• The most disappointing man this morning is undoubtedly Elfyn Evans (Toyota). The Welshman, who left in the wake of Thierry Neuville, was never sharp. Which explains a rather worrying 17 seconds on the head.
• Sébastien Ogier suffered a disabling problem during SS5. The eight-time world champion could no longer hear his co-driver Vincent Landais on the radio! The latter then showed him the route to follow by waving his arms. Losing a handful of seconds on your opponents is performance!
• Equipped with one less spare wheel compared to its rivals, Adrien fourmaux (M-Sport Ford) is in the game to continue its series of convincing results in WRC. The Northerner is 7th but 14″ behind the leader. “We took care of the tires throughout this loop but at the end I felt like I was dragging myself. I'm happy with my performance, there wasn't much grip. And a lot can happen this Friday afternoon! »
• In WRC2, Oliver Solberg (Skoda) remained in the lead throughout the morning, ahead of Frenchman Yohan Rossel (Citroën).
• In WRC3, the young Frenchman Mattéo Chatillon leads by a small margin (1 second) over the Paraguayan Diego Dominguez. Frenchman Tom Pieri is 3rd at 1”2 after SS3.
• The second loop on Friday will start at 15 p.m. and can be followed in live text on AUTOhebdo.fr.

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