The third day of Forum8 Rally Japan 2024 has come to an end. Ott Tänak retained the event lead after the day.
SS10
Elfyn Evans kicked off the day with a stage win. As the Welshman set a time three seconds faster than Ott Tänak and Grégoire Munster who tied for second. Sebastien Ogier finished with the fourth fastest time on the stage, 3.2 seconds slower than Tänak and Munster. Thierry Neuville rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 0.8 seconds slower than Ogier.
SS11
Thierry Neuville took his first stage win of the day on the eleventh stage of Forum8 Rally Japan 2024. With a time 1.2 seconds faster than Sebastien Ogier. Takamoto Katsuta finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 0.1 seconds slower than Ogier. Elfyn Evans was fourth fastest on the stage, 2.1 seconds slower than Katsuta. Ott Tänak rounded out the top five on the stage finishing 1.6 seconds slower than Evans.
SS12
Elfyn Evans took home the stage win on SS12. With a time one second faster than Sebastien Ogier and Ott Tänak who tied for second. Thierry Neuville finished with the fourth fastest time on the stage, 2.2 seconds slower than Ogier and Tänak. Grégoire Munster rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 1:6 seconds slower than Neuville.
SS13
Forum8 Rally Japan 2024 leader Ott Tänak took his first stage win of the day on SS13. With a time 0.8 seconds faster than Sebastien Ogier. Takamoto Katsuta finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 3.3 seconds slower than Ogier. Thierry Neuville set the fourth fastest time on the stage, 1.6 seconds slower than Katsuta. Adrien Fourmaux rounded out the top five on the stage finishing 0.1 seconds slower than Neuville.
SS14
Sebastien Ogier and Thierry Neuville tied for the stage win on the fourteenth stage of the weekend. As both drivers set a time 2.4 seconds faster than Takamoto Katsuta. Ott Tänak finished with the fourth fastest time on the stage, 1.2 seconds slower than Katsuta. Elfyn Evans rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 2.4 seconds slower than Tänak.
SS15
Sebastien Ogier took home his second consecutive stage win on the fifteenth stage of Forum8 Rally Japan 2024. With a time 0.1 seconds faster than Thierry Neuville. Adrien Fourmaux finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 1.2 seconds slower than Neuville. Ott Tänak set the fourth fastest time on the stage, two seconds slower than Fourmaux. Takamoto Katsuta rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 3.2 seconds slower than Tänak.
SS16
Ott Tänak capped off the second day with a stage win. As the Estonian set a time 1.1 seconds faster than Adrien Fourmaux. Grégoire Munster finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 0.6 seconds slower than Fourmaux. Takamoto Katsuta was fourth fastest on the stage, with a time 0.1 seconds slower than Munster. Sebastien Ogier and Elfyn Evans rounded out the top five on the stage. With both finishing 0.2 seconds slower than Katsuta.
The second day of Forum8 Rally Japan has come to an end. Ott Tänak took the event lead on the day’s eight stages.
SS2, Isegami’s Tunnel 1
Thierry Neuville kicked off the day with a stage win. As the championship hopeful set a time 1.2 seconds faster than Ott Tänak to take the stage win. Elfyn Evans finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 5 seconds slower than Neuville and 3.8 seconds slower than Tänak. WRC2 driver Nikolay Gryazin was fourth fastest on the stage, 39.6 seconds slower than Evans. WRC2 driver Sami Pajari rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 0.8 seconds slower than Gryazin.
SS3, Inabu/Shitara 1
Sebastien Ogier became the third different stage winner of Forum8 Rally Japan 2024 on stage three. With a time 1.8 seconds faster than Elfyn Evans. Ott Tänak finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 3.5 seconds slower than Ogier and 1.7 seconds slower than Evans. Thierry Neuville set the fourth fastest time on the stage, 1.4 seconds slower than Tänak. Takamoto Katsuta rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 1.5 seconds slower than Neuville.
SS4, Shinshrio 1
Elfyn Evans took home the stage win on SS4. As the reigning event winner set a time three seconds faster than Sebastien Ogier. Ott Tänak finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 3.2 seconds slower than Evans and 0.2 seconds slower than Ogier. Takamoto Katsuta was fourth fastest on the stage, 4.6 seconds slower than Tänak. Andreas Mikkelsen rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing five seconds slower than Katsuta.
SS5, Isegami’s Tunnel 2
Ott Tänak set the fastest time on the fifth stage of Forum8 Rally Japan 2024. With a time 6.2 seconds faster than Sebastien Ogier. Elfyn Evans finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 14.4 seconds slower than Tänak and 8.2 seconds slower than Ogier. Takamoto Katsuta set the fourth fastest time on the stage, four seconds slower than Evans. Adrien Fourmaux rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 3.2 seconds slower than Katsuta.
SS6, Inabu/Shitara 2
Ott Tänak became the first two-time stage winner of the weekend on SS6. As the Estonian set a time 3.9 seconds faster than Sebastien Ogier to top the stage. Elfyn Evans finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 6.7 seconds slower than Tänak and 2.8 seconds slower than Ogier. Takamoto Katsuta was fourth fastest on the stage, 3.7 seconds slower than Evans. Adrien Fourmaux rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 4.9 seconds slower than Katsuta.
SS7, Shinshiro 2
Elfyn Evans took home the stage win on the seventh stage of Forum8 Rally Japan. With a time 0.4 seconds faster than Ott Tänak. Sebastien Ogier was third fastest on the stage, four seconds slower than Evans and 3.6 seconds slower than Tänak. Adrien Fourmaux finished with the fourth fastest time on the stage, 1.6 seconds slower than Ogier. Grégoire Munster rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 10.1 seconds slower than Fourmaux.
SS8, Okazaki SSS 1
Takamoto Katsuta took his first stage win of the weekend on SS8. As the Japanese driver set a time 0.6 seconds faster than Ott Tänak and Sebastien Ogier who tied for second on the stage. Adrien Fourmaux finished with the fourth fastest time on the stage, 0.1 seconds slower than Tänak and Ogier. Elfyn Evans rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 0.9 seconds slower than Fourmaux.
SS9, Okazaki SSS2
Adrien Fourmaux, Takamoto Katsuta and Elfyn Evans tied for the stage win on the final stage of the second day of Forum8 Rally Japan 2024. As all drivers finished 0.1 seconds faster than Ott Tänak. Sebastien Ogier rounded out the top five times on the stage, finishing 0.2 seconds slower than Tänak.
The first day of Forum8 Rally Japan has come to an end. Adrien Fourmaux leads the event after the day’s line stage.
Shakedown
WRC2 driver Chris Ingram topped the shakedown stage. As Ingram set a time 0.5 seconds faster than Ott Tänak. Adrien Fourmaux finished with the third fastest time on the shakedown stage, 0.3 seconds slower than Tänak. Sebastien Ogier was fourth fastest on the stage, 0.4 seconds slower than Fourmaux. Takamoto Katsuta rounded out the top five on his home events shakedown stage, with a time 0.5 seconds slower than Ogier.
SS1, Toyota Stadium SSS1
Adrien Fourmaux took home the first stage win of Forum8 Rally Japan 2024. With a time 0.5 seconds faster than Ott Tänak. Takamoto Katsuta finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 0.3 seconds slower than Tänak and 0.8 seconds slower than Fourmaux. Last year’s winner Elfyn Evans was fourth fastest on the opening stage, 0.1 seconds slower than Katsuta. Sebastien Ogier and Thierry Neuville tied for fifth fastest on the stage. As both drivers finished 1.3 seconds slower than Evans.
Bad Start For The Home Manufacturer
Forum8 Rally Japan 2024 is huge for Toyota. As not only is it the team’s home event, but it is also the round that will decide the manufacturer’s championship. Toyota sits 15 points behind Hyundai in the manufacturer’s championship standings heading into this weekend. Toyota has won the championship the last two seasons in a row. However, this season they have seemed to struggle without two-time world champion Kalle Rovanperä scoring points. Sebastien Ogier has picked up some slack, but Elfyn Evans has had an extremely disappointing season thus far. Nevertheless, the team will need a good weekend from Evans, Ogier and Takamoto Katsuta if they want to win another manufacturer’s championship. Judging from the day one results there is some room to gain for the team, however, shakedown and a SuperSpecial aren’t really grounds to stand upon and worry.
The fourth and final day of the Central European Rally 2024 has come to an end. Ott Tänak held on to take the event win.
SS15, KNAUS TABBERT Am Hochwald 1
Adrien Fourmaux topped the first stage of the day. With a time 2.2 seconds faster than Elfyn Evans. Takamoto Katsuta was third fastest on the stage, 3.1 seconds slower than Fourmaux and 0.9 seconds slower than Evans. Thierry Neuville finished with the fourth fastest time on the stage, 0.5 seconds slower than Katsuta. Ott Tänak rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 0.2 seconds slower than Neuville.
SS16, Passauer Land 1
Takamoto Katsuta took home the stage win on the sixteenth stage of the Central European Rally 2024. As Katsuta set a time 1.5 seconds faster than Sebastien Ogier to top the stage. Ott Tänak finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 1.9 seconds slower than Katsuta and 0.4 seconds slower than Ogier. Adrien Fourmaux had the fourth fastest time on the stage, 1.4 seconds slower than Tänak. Elfyn Evans rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing two seconds slower than Fourmaux.
SS17, KNAUS TABBERT Am Hochwald 2
Elfyn Evans took home the stage win on SS17. With a time one second faster than Ott Tänak. Takamoto Katsuta finished with the third fastest time on the stage, three seconds slower than Evans and two seconds slower than Tänak. Thierry Neuville set the fourth fastest time on the stage, 0.9 seconds slower than Katsuta. Adrien Fourmaux rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 0.2 seconds slower than Neuville.
SS18, Passauer Land 2
Takamoto Katsuta topped the final stage of the Central European Rally 2024. With a time 2.4 seconds faster than Andreas Mikkelsen. Elfyn Evans finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 2.6 seconds slower than Katsuta and 0.2 seconds slower than Mikkelsen. Thierry Neuville set the fourth fastest time on the stage, 1.3 seconds slower than Evans. Adrien Fourmaux rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 0.3 seconds slower than Neuville.
The third day of the Central European Rally 2024 has come to an end. Sebastien Ogier reclaimed the event lead heading into the final day.
SS9, Granit und Wald 1
Ott Tänak kicked off the penultimate day with a stage win. As the Estonian set a time 3.9 seconds faster than Sebastien Ogier to top the stage. Elfyn Evans finished with the third-fastest time on the stage, 0.7 seconds slower than Ogier and 4.6 seconds slower than Tänak. Takamoto Katsuta had the fourth fastest time on the stage, 0.1 seconds slower than Evans. Thierry Neuville rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 2.4 seconds slower than Katsuta.
SS10, Beyond Borders 1
Elfyn Evans took home the stage win on the tenth stage of the Central European Rally 2024. With a time 1.2 seconds faster than Sebastien Ogier. Thierry Neuville finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 1.1 seconds slower than Ogier and 2.3 seconds slower than Evans. Takamoto Katsuta set the fourth fastest time on the stage, 4.6 seconds slower than Neuville. Ott Tänak rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 0.3 seconds slower than Katsuta.
SS11, Schärdinger Innviertel 1
Sebastien Ogier capped off the morning loop with a stage win. As the Frenchman set a time 0.1 seconds faster than Elfyn Evans to take the stage win. Ott Tänak had the third fastest time on the stage, one second slower than Evans and 1.1 seconds slower than Ogier. Sami Pajari finished with the fourth fastest time on the stage, 2.5 seconds slower than Tänak. Andreas Mikkelsen rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 5.6 seconds slower than Pajari.
SS12, Granit und Wald 2
Ott Tänak took home the stage win on the twelfth stage of the Central European Rally 2024. With a time 3.4 seconds faster than Sebastien Ogier and Elfyn Evans. Thierry Neuville had the fourth fastest time on the stage, three seconds slower than Ogier and Evans. Takamoto Katsuta rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 1.5 seconds slower than Neuville.
SS13, Beyond Borders 2
Sebastien Ogier claimed the stage win on the third day’s penultimate stage. With a time 0.9 seconds faster than Thierry Neuville. Ott Tänak finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 2.1 seconds slower than Neuville and three seconds slower than Ogier. Elfyn Evans set the fourth fastest time on the stage, 0.9 seconds slower than Tänak. Takamoto Katsuta rounded out the top five on the stage, 0.7 seconds slower than Evans.
SS14, Schärdinger Innviertel 2
Sebastien Ogier capped off the third day of the Central European Rally 2024 with a stage win. As Ogier set a time 1.1 seconds faster than Ott Tänak. Elfyn Evans finished with the third fastest time on the stage, finishing 0.9 seconds slower than Tänak and two seconds slower than Ogier. Thierry Neuville had the third fastest time on the stage, 0.1 seconds slower than Evans. Sami Pajari rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 2.1 seconds slower than Neuville.
The second day of the Central European Rally 2024 has come to an end. Thierry Neuville took the event lead on the day.
SS3, Klatovy 2
Sebastien Ogier kicked off the second day with a stage win. As the Frenchman set a time 1.5 seconds faster than Takamoto Katsuta. Elfyn Evans finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 0.7 seconds slower than Katsuta and 2.2 seconds slower than Ogier. Thierry Neuville was fourth fastest on the stage, 0.1 seconds slower than Evans. Ott Tänak rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 0.5 seconds slower than Neuville.
SS4, Strašin 1
Elfyn Evans topped the fourth stage of the Central European Rally 2024. With a time 1.6 seconds faster than Thierry Neuville. Ott Tänak finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 2.4 seconds slower than Neuville and four seconds slower than Evans. Sebastien Ogier set the fourth fastest time on the stage, 0.4 seconds slower than Tänak. Takamoto Katsuta rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 0.8 seconds slower than Ogier.
SS5, Šumavské Hoštice 1
Ott Tänak capped off the morning loop with his first stage win of the weekend. As the Estonian set a time 0.3 seconds faster than Thierry Neuville. Sebastien Ogier had the third fastest time on the stage, three seconds slower than Neuville and 3.3 seconds slower than Tänak. Elfyn Evans finished with the fourth fastest time on the stage, 2.8 seconds slower than Ogier. Takamoto Katsuta rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 9.3 seconds slower than Evans.
SS6, Klatovy 3
Takamoto Katsuta took home his first stage win of the Central European Rally 2024 on SS6. With a time 0.4 seconds faster than Thierry Neuville. Sebastien Ogier finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 0.6 seconds slower than Neuville and one second slower than Katsuta. Elfyn Evans set the fourth fastest time on the stage, 0.2 seconds slower than Ogier. Ott Tänak rounded out the top five on the stage, with a time 1.7 seconds slower than Evans.
SS7, Strašin 2
Thierry Neuville topped the seventh stage of the weekend. As the Belgian set a time 0.6 seconds faster than Elfyn Evans to take the stage win. Ott Tänak finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 0.6 seconds slower than Evans and 1.2 seconds slower than Neuville. Sebastien Ogier was fourth fastest on the stage, 2.4 seconds slower than Tänak. Takamoto Katsuta rounded out the top five on the stage, with a time 1.2 seconds slower than Ogier.
SS8, Šumavské Hoštice 2
Sebastien Ogier capped off the second day of the Central European Rally 2024 in the same fashion he started it in. As the eight-time World Champion set a time 0.5 seconds faster than Thierry Neuville to take the stage win. Ott Tänak had the third fastest on the stage, 0.3 seconds slower than Neuville and 0.8 seconds slower than Ogier. Elfyn Evans finished with the fourth fastest time on the stage, 7.1 seconds slower than Tänak. Takamoto Katsuta rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 7.7 seconds slower than Evans.
Mikkelsen Crashes Out
Andreas Mikkelsen would crash out of the event on SS5. Mikkelsen would slide off the road into a fence which destroyed his i20 rally1. His car would block the road leading to SS5 getting red-flagged and ultimately cancelled.
The first day of the Central European Rally 2024 has come to an end. Sebastien Ogier leads after the day’s two stages.
SS1, SSS Velká Chuchle
Sebastien Ogier kicked off the weekend with a stage win. As the Frenchman set a time 0.6 seconds faster than Takamoto Katsuta to take the stage win. Andreas Mikkelsen finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 0.5 seconds slower than Katsuta and 1.1 seconds slower than Ogier. Elfyn Evans and Adrien Fourmaux tied for the fourth fastest time on the stage. With both drivers finishing 0.1 seconds slower than Mikkelsen.
SS2, Klatovy 1
Thierry Neuville took home the stage win of the second stage of the Central European Rally 2024. With a time one second faster than championship rival and Hyundai teammate Ott Tänak. Sebastien Ogier finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 0.1 seconds slower than Tänak and 1.1 seconds slower than Neuville. Andreas Mikkelsen set the fourth fastest time on the stage, 0.6 seconds slower than Ogier. Adrien Fourmaux rounded out the top five times on the stage, finishing 0.6 seconds slower than Mikkelsen.
What To Expect From Day Two Of The Central European Rally 2024
The first full day of the event will see drivers contest 110.64 km across 6 stages. With the longest being the 26.69 km Strašin stage which serves as stages 4 and 7. The shortest stage is the 11.78 Klatovy stage which serves as stages 3 and 6. The day features a 30-minute midday remote service zone. Thierry Neuville is first on the road followed by Ott Tänak and event leader Sebastien Ogier. Ogier takes a 0.9-second lead over Thierry Neuville into the day. Andreas Mikkelsen is third, 0.8 seconds behind Neuville and 1.7 seconds behind Ogier. The rally1 driver in last (not named Jourdan Serderidis) is Grégoire Munster who is 9.5 seconds off the lead.
The Central European Rally 2024 shakedown stage has come to an end. Ott Tänak and Miko Marczyk topped the stage in their respective classes.
Rally1
Ott Tänak topped the Central European Rally 2024 shakedown stage with a time 0.2 seconds faster than Sebastien Ogier. Takamoto Katsuta finished third fastest on the stage, 0.1 seconds slower than Ogier and 0.3 seconds slower than Tänak. Thierry Neuville set the fourth fastest time, 0.4 seconds slower than Katsuta. Sami Pajari rounded out the top five on the shakedown stage, with a time 0.1 seconds slower than the reigning event winner Thierry Neuville.
WRC2
Miko Marczyk took home the fastest time in the WRC2 class. With a time 0.2 seconds faster than Yohan Rossel. Nikolay Gryazin finished third fastest on the stage, 0.7 seconds slower than Rossel and 0.9 seconds slower than Marczyk. William Creighton set the fourth fastest time on the stage, 0.2 seconds slower than Gryazin. Maxime Potty rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 1.9 seconds slower than Creighton.
What To Expect From Central European Rally Day One
The first day of the Central European Rally 2024 kicks off with two stages totalling to 14.33 km. Thierry Neuville will be first on the road for the Rally1 drivers, followed by Ott Tänak and Sebastien Ogier. For the first time since Croatia being first on the road is an advantage for Neuville. As he will get the cleanest road and not have any debris on the road for the first pass of each stage. This is great for the Belgian as he can take home the championship this weekend. However, that inquires fending off Ott Tänak who will also get a decently clean road. As far as WRC2 goes, Filip Mares will be first on the road due to him being a local driver. Mares will start before all the Rally1 cars and be followed by Marijan Griebel.
The 2024 World Rally Championship season continues this weekend with Round 11 the Central European Rally 2024.
Championship Rundown
Thierry Neuville continues to hold the championship lead heading into the Central European Rally 2024. With Neuville holding a 29-point lead over the Estonian. Sebastien Ogier is third in the championship, now 41 points behind Neuville and 12 points behind Tänak. Elfyn Evans is fourth, 5 points behind Ogier. Adrien Fourmaux rounds out the top five in the championship, with the Frenchman sitting 21 points behind Evans.
Event Rundown
Day One
The first day of the Central European Rally 2024 kicks off with two stages totalling to 14.33 km.
Day Two
The first full day of the event will see drivers contest 110.64 km across 6 stages. With the longest being the 26.69 km Strašin stage which serves as stages 4 and 7. The shortest stage is the 11.78 Klatovy stage which serves as stages 3 and 6. The day features a 30-minute midday remote service zone.
Day Three
As per usual the thrid fay of an event is the longest. As the third day of the Central European Rally 2024 will see drivers contest 123.46 km across 6 stages. With the longest stage being the 24.33 km Beyond Borders stage which serves as stages 10 and 13. The shortest is the 17.35 km Schärdinger Innviertel stage which serves as stages 11 and 14.
Day Four
The fourth and final day of the event will see drivers contest 54.08 across 4 stages. The longest stage is the 14.87 km Passauer Land stage which serves as stages 16 and 18. The shortest stage is the 12.17 km Knaus Tabbert Am Hochwald stage which serves as stages 15 and 17.
The third and final day of Rally Chile Bio Bio 2024 has come to an end. Kalle Rovanperä held on to take the event win.
SS13, Laraquete 1
Sebastien Ogier kicked off the final day with a stage win. As the Frenchman set a time 5.6 seconds faster than Kalle Rovanperä to take the stage win. Elfyn Evans finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 9.2 seconds slower than Ogier and 4.2 seconds slower than Rovanperä. Esapekka Lappi was fourth fastest on the stage, 1.6 seconds slower than Evans. Ott Tänak rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 0.6 seconds slower than Lappi.
SS14, Bio Bio 1
Sebastien Ogier also took home the fastest time on the fourteenth stage of Rally Chile Bio Bio 2024. With a time 0.2 seconds faster than Kalle Rovanperä to top the stage. Ott Tänak finished third fastest on the stage, 0.3 seconds slower than Ogier and 0.1 seconds slower than Rovanperä. Elfyn Evans set the fourth fastest time on the stage, 0.9 seconds slower than Tänak. Thierry Neuville rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 2.2 seconds slower than Evans.
SS15, Laraquete 2
Sebastien Ogier was also the fastest driver on SS15. With the Toyota driver setting a time 1.5 seconds faster than Elfyn Evans to top the stage. Thierry Neuville finished with the third fastest time on the stage, 2.2 seconds slower than Ogier and 0.7 seconds slower than Evans. Kalle Rovanperä was fourth fastest on the stage, 0.1 seconds slower than Neuville. Ott Tänak rounded out the top five on the stage, 1.3 seconds slower than Rovanperä.
SS16, Bio Bio 2 Wolf Powerstage
Sebastien Ogier also took home the stage win on the sixteenth stage of Rally Chile Bio Bio 2024 to complete a clean sweep of the day. Ogier would set a time 0.1 seconds faster than Kalle Rovanperä to top the stage. Ott Tänak finished with the third fastest on the stage, 2.3 seconds slower than Ogier and 2.2 seconds slower than Rovanperä. Thierry Neuville was fourth fastest on the stage, 1.3 seconds slower than Tänak. Elfyn Evans rounded out the top five on the stage, 0.1 seconds slower than Neuville.
Championship Rundown
Thierry Neuville continues to hold the championship lead after Rally Chile Bio Bio 2024. However, Neuville would lose points to his Hyundai stablemate Ott Tänak. As Neuville now only holds a 29-point lead over the Estonian compared to the 34-point lead he had heading into the event. Sebastien Ogier remains third in the championship, now 41 points behind Neuville and 12 points behind Tänak. Elfyn Evans also remains in the same position, as he is still fourth, now 5 points behind Ogier. Adrien Fourmaux rounds out the top five in the championship, with the Frenchman sitting 21 points behind Evans.
Driver Quotes
Toyota
Jari-Matti Latvala – Team Principal
“This is a great result for our team. A perfect Sunday for the first time this season feels really good, especially after the devastating blows we felt on the final days of the past two events. Our drivers did a magnificent job today pushing until the end of the last stage. This result will boost the whole team and give them extra motivation for the two remaining events. Kalle and Elfyn both drove really well the whole weekend and either would have deserved to win the rally. Seb did really quick times on every stage he did and thanks to his speed and his fighting spirit today, we take away really important points for the manufacturers’ championship. Lastly, Sami did exactly what we were looking for this weekend, driving consistently and bringing the car home with a really mature performance, gaining more and more experience. So, all in all, it has been a really positive rally for us.”
Kalle Rovanperä – 1st Overall
“This win feels really good for us. It was a tough weekend and it always feels good when you’ve really had to fight for a victory. It wasn’t easy at any point with all of the weather and everything, but we did a good job. On Friday I wasn’t feeling so comfortable, but we made it through without any big mistakes and when conditions became difficult we could make some big gaps. It was important to push today as well and together with our team-mates we scored really important points for the manufacturers’ championship and we can be very happy with that. A big thanks to the team: the car was really strong this weekend.”
Elfyn Evans – 2nd Overall
“It’s been a good weekend more or less from the start to the end. We showed some good performance and it’s an amazing result for the team and I’m happy to be a part of that. The conditions didn’t go in our favour yesterday but Kalle did well with the strategy and has driven really well, so congratulations to him. Today we had more wet conditions and quite a bit of fog around too, but we managed to get through cleanly with no issues and still some decent speed. The result has really helped in the manufacturers’ championship and we just need to focus on continuing in the same way now until the end of the year.”
Sami Pajari – 6th Overall
“It’s really nice to reach the finish of this rally. Thank you to the team, because it has been such a pleasure to drive this great car again. Friday was quite promising for us and we could show some pace. Then there was a lot of learning on the following two days with tricky conditions but that’s part of the game. To get safely through the whole rally was the main plan, so we need to be happy with that and at least we could show good pace on some of the stages. Now I can’t wait for Central European Rally which will be another new challenge with a lot to learn.”
Sebastien Ogier – 36th Overall
“t’s nice to finish the weekend on a positive note and really help the team today to bring the manufacturers’ championship back alive. I still feel a bit disappointed with myself and the mistakes we made on the previous days which were very costly, because we had amazing speed and won most of the stages we finished. But that’s not enough in rallying: you need to put it all together and we didn’t do that this weekend. I had a lot of fun driving the car and I want to thank the team for all their efforts improving the car, as it’s never felt so good on gravel. We are going in the right direction and we will keep on pushing up to Rally Japan.”
Hyundai
Cyril Abiteboul- Team Principal
“This has been a very difficult rally for us, and a complete contrast to where we were at Acropolis Rally earlier this month. We didn’t have the package to win this weekend, and so we focused on the championship battles and avoiding the pitfalls we saw over the weekend. In that respect, it is mission accomplished, but we depart Chile with the gap we had built in the manufacturers’ standings now halved. It is imperative that we give our drivers a more competitive car for the last two tarmac rallies, where we hope to unleash the full potential of the Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid and rebuild our advantage. On a final note, I would like to extend my congratulations to Janne on a fantastic career in rallying, and wish him all the best in his ‘retirement’. He is a character like no other and he will be dearly missed by everyone in the team. ”
Ott Tänak – 3rd Overall
“It is difficult to take many positives form this weekend; we were a bit lucky that Ogier hit trouble on Friday but other than that, there was nothing we could do to take the fight to the Toyotas. We gave Rally Chile our maximum and scored everything we could. Now we go to two tarmac rallies and in normal circumstances our road position should be good for us. The fight for the manufacturers’ title is not over yet, but we need to work hard for it.”
Thierry Neuville – 4th Overall
“A tough weekend for us, made more challenging by the weather conditions. Since Saturday, things started to go a bit better for us in terms of set-up and the profile of the stages, which gave us a bit more confidence and a decent rhythm. There was no need to take big risks, we just managed our result. We tried to push a bit more in the Power Stage but we had fog for a couple of corners that cost us important seconds and a few points but at the end of the day, I’m happy with the outcome.”
Esapekka Lappi – Retired SS15
“This has not been our weekend. Today was much more challenging in terms of conditions with the overnight rain and low cloud affecting visibility. There was some light at the end of the tunnel but our task was to attack today and try to mix up the points, but we failed to do that. Finally, I need to thank Janne for 15 seasons together. We were both rookies when we started and we climbed up the hill to be professionals together, and now this journey comes to an end. I’m sure we still sit together in a rally car, but not professionally. He has been the loudest laugher of the team – you might not see him, but you
can hear him from very far away. We will miss his jokes and sense of humour.”
M-Sport
Richard Millener, Team Principal, said:
“It is definitely a case of what could have been here, the one minute time penalty really hampered the overall result for Adrien, which was a huge shame. However, that’s rally sometimes and despite this disappointment we can still look back on another positive weekend. Two stage wins, another demonstration of the speed of the Puma from both Adrien and Gregoire, and solid results from them both in some really tricky conditions.”
“I am also happy for Grégoire and Louis that they have got a solid result after the last two tricky events.”
“For Mārtiņš and Renārs, I guess it wasn’t quite what they had hoped for. A small mistake with big consequences on Friday, and a tough last stage with no rear spoiler, but I think they still did a great job and got an insight into the experience that they need to learn to get to the top of the WRC – one of the key reasons to bring them here.”
Adrien Fourmaux, 5th overall
“First time here in Chile, and I really enjoyed the stages. The fans were great with us and cheered us on all the time. We enjoyed the rally; it was really a shame what happened on Friday with the issue with the alternator and the water pipe, but that’s part of the game.”
“We managed to get a top-five result so we can be pleased with that, now we go back to Tarmac to finish the season.”
Grégoire Munster, 7th overall,
“I’m happy with our Friday performance, we showed good pace and were competitive with the front guys. Saturday was a bit more difficult in the morning, they were new stages for us but we improved in the afternoon in tricky conditions. In the fog we managed to do a third-fastest time in SS11, which was really great for us.”
“Sunday was tricky again with the rain and fog but we managed to stay out of trouble and not make any mistakes throughout the weekend. The goal was to bring the car home, which was important for us after a good effort on Friday.”
Mārtiņš Sesks, 24th overall
“First of all I think it was really challenging to be here in Chile for the first time. Our first two Rally1 outings were quite smooth really from our side. But here we found many new challenges, and everyday was different. We caught a double puncture on Friday unfortunately, and since Saturday it was just about keeping it safe and learning as much as we can.”
“Some new experience for us, especially with losing the aero on Sunday. I think it’s better to have these challenges now, when we’re not really fighting for anything. It’s better to know how to cope with it now than in the future when there’s more at stake.”