The first day of Rally Italia Sardegna has come to an end. Elfyn Evans leads Ott Tänak by 0.2 seconds after the day.
Shakedown
Esapekka Lappi set the fastest time on the Rally Italia Sardegna shakedown. Finishing the shakedown stage 0.6 seconds faster than his Hyundai teammate Thierry Neuville who set the second-quickest time. Sebastien Ogier and Pierre-Louis Loubet tied for the third quickest time on the shakedown stage. With both Ogier and Loubet posting a time 0.6 seconds slower than Neuville. Dani Sordo would set the fifth fastest time on the shakedown, setting a time 0.3 seconds slower than Ogier and Loubet. Kalle Rovanperä set the sixth fastest time on the stage, finishing with a time 0.2 seconds slower than Sordo. Rovanperä’s teammate Takamoto Katsuta was seventh fastest on the stage, setting a time a mere 0.1 seconds slower than Rovanperä. Ott Tänak had the eighth fastest time on the shakedown stage, finishing with a time 0.2 seconds slower than Katsuta. Elfyn Evans would finish with the slowest time of the Rally1 class on the shakedown stage. With Evans setting a time 0.9 seconds slower than Tänak.
SS1 OLBIA-CABU ABBAS
Esapekka Lappi (FIN) Janne Ferm (FIN) Of HYUNDAI SHELL MOBIS WORLD RALLY TEAM are seen performing during the World Rally Championship Italy in Olbia, Italy on 1,June,2023 // Jaanus Ree / Red Bull Content Pool
The first stage of Rally Italia Sardegna would see Esapekka Lappi take the stage win. Lappi set a time 0.2 seconds faster than Ott Tänak who set the second fastest time on the stage. Thierry Neuville finished with the third fastest time on the stage, with a time 0.3 seconds slower than his former Hyundai teammate Ott Tänak. Takamoto Katsuta was fourth fastest, finishing with a time 0.4 seconds slower than Neuville. Kalle Rovanperä would round out the top five on the stage, finishing with a time 0.3 seconds slower than Katsuta.
Rally Italia Sardegna Preview: WRC1