Antibes Côte d'Azur Rally – SS7: Raphaël Astier gains time in the overall standings with the fastest stage

Raphaël Astier and Denis Giraudet (Porsche The 992s set the fastest time on the seventh special stage in 7:17.4, gaining 2,9 seconds on the Bonato-Boulloud duo in the overall standings. The Porsche 992 GT+ driver proved more comfortable than the leader in his Lancia Ypsilon Rally2 HF Integrale on this 11,22-kilometer course, despite degraded grip conditions that plagued the entire field. "It's extremely slippery.", commented the author of the scratch after his run, a remark shared by a large number of drivers.

Yoann Bonato, the first to set off, opened the road in 7:20.3, expressing himself little satisfaction with his time, commenting in particular on his hesitation on a road with so little grip. Hugo Margaillan and Mathieu Coppa (Hyundai The i20N Rally2 drivers completed the top three on the stage with a time of 7:20.2, 4,9 seconds ahead of Lucas Darmezin and Charlyne Quartini (Hyundai i20N Rally2). Behind them, Jean-Baptiste Franceschi and Jules Escartefigue (Skoda Fabia RS Rally2) followed with a time of 7:27.2, ahead of Nikolay Gryazin and Konstantin Aleksandrov (Citroën C3 Rally2) in 7:28.3. Benjamin and Florence Stirling (Citroën C3 Rally2) finished seventh on the stage with a time of 7:32.8.

Overall, Yoann Bonato remains the leader with a 5,6-second advantage over Raphaël Astier, while Hugo Margaillan is third, 27 seconds behind the leader. Darmezin, Franceschi, and Gryazin complete the top six, ahead of Stirling, Ledogar, Fernandes, and Dorseuil. Six stages remain to be run this Sunday before the final winner is determined.

ALSO READ > Antibes Côte d'Azur Rally – SS6: Yoann Bonato finishes the day in the lead

CFR – Antibes Côte d’Azur Rally
The classification of SS7

The general classification after SS7