The day in Sardinia was thrilling and brutal. Sebastian Ogier, who was leading overnight, decided to have only one spare tire. This strategy quickly backfired on him when he had a slow puncture on the first stage on Saturday. Ogier had to carefully manage his tires on the tough stages before reaching the tire change zone at lunchtime.
In this crucial stage, Ott Tanak drove his Hyundai i20N to the fastest time, taking the overall lead by just 0.1 seconds. Thierry Neuville, the championship leader, moved up to third place from fifth, although he was 35 seconds behind the leader. However, he was ahead of Elfyn Evans, who struggled and finished in sixth place.
Despite his setback, Ogier won the next stage and regained the lead by 2.2 seconds. He was cautious in the following stage, considering his tire situation, and finished second behind Tanak. Tanak regained the lead by 2.2 seconds.
Once Ogier had new Pirelli tires, he dominated the competition. He won three out of the four afternoon stages, securing a comfortable(ish) 17.1-second lead for the short final on Sunday. Hyundai instructed Tanak to slow down after Neuville’s exit, further aiding Ogier’s lead.
The eighth stage saw Neuville crash and retire from the rally. Takamoto Katsuta was also forced to retire in the ninth stage due to transmission issues. Dani Sordo took third place, with Evans moving up to fourth. Evans had the opportunity to capitalize on Neuville’s misfortune, needing to reduce a 30.5-second gap to catch Sordo.
In the WRC2 category, Sami Pajari extended his lead to almost a minute. However, Rossel made an impressive recovery, climbing from 15th to second place overall. He gained almost 1 minute and 20 seconds over Pajari and won all stages.
© 2024
