The first day of EKO Acropolis Rally Greece has come to an end. Andreas Mikkelsen leads the WRC2 class after the day.
SSS1, EKO Super Special Stage
WRC2 championship leader Andreas Mikkelsen claimed the first stage win of EKO Acropolis Rally Greece. Posting a time 0.4 seconds faster than Nikolay Gryazin on the stage. Marco Bulicia finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 0.3 seconds slower than Gryazin. Adrien Fourmaux set the fourth fastest time on the stage, 0.3 seconds slower than Bulicia. Kajetan Kajetanowicz and Yohan Rossel tied for the fifth fastest time on the stage, with both drivers finishing 0.1 seconds slower than Fourmaux.
Canceled Shakedown
Yesterday it was announced the shakedown stage would be canceled for drivers of all classes due to weather. Storms in the region used for EKO Acropolis Rally Greece have been hit hard with storms as of late. Flooding some roads and turning roads into mud with giant puddles in some spots. Drivers are preparing for a weekend of unpredictability.
What To Expect From Day Two
Day two of EKO Acropolis Rally Greece will be the first full day of stages. Andreas Mikkelsen is sitting exactly where he wants to be, in the rally lead. Yohan Rossel will need to put in some work to maintain second in the championship. Oliver Solberg is in the same boat as Rossel. Sami Pajari had a poor showing on the opening stage of the event, finishing 14th in class. He will also have some work to do tomorrow and throughout the rest of the event.
A Correction
It was said in the WRC2 event preview that Yohan Rossel would not be contesting EKO Acropolis Rally Greece this weekend. That was indeed false. I just happened to miss Rossel’s name on the entry sheet. These things happen from time to time, even if I’ve looked at the sheet a dozen or so times. Luckily the mistake was only made on a small thing and not something completely major.
*All comments taken from the EKO Acropolis Rally Greece Twitter Page (@AcropolisRally)
SS1-#23 Oliver SOLBERG / Elliott EDMONDSON
“Great fun to put on a show for the fans. It’s going to be tough. I had to drive slowly here to take care of the tyres”
SS1-#22 Sami PAJARI / Enni MÄLKÖNEN
“I’m really looking forward to this rally. The weather will be a challenge, but I hope it will be good”
SS1-#21 Yohan ROSSEL / Arnaud DUNAND
“Honestly I’m happy, it’s my favorite rally on gravel. But it’s like Dakar this week!”
SS1-#20 Andreas MIKKELSEN / Torstein ERIKSEN
“I don’t know what to expect. A bit nervous here, because you reminded me [of] the first stage last year.”