The first day of Vodafone Rally De Portugal 2024 has come to a close. Thierry Neuville leads after the days lone stage.
Shakedown
Dani Sordo was right back into form for the shakedown stage. As the Spaniard set the fastest time, 0.5 seconds faster than Ott Tänak. Thierry Neuville finished third fastest, 0.9 seconds slower than Sordo and 0.4 seconds slower than Tänak. Sebastien Ogier posted the fourth fastest time, 0.1 seconds slower than Neuville. Adrien Fourmaux rounded out the top five on the Vodafone Rally De Portugal shakedown stage. With a time 0.1 seconds slower than Ogier.
SS1, Figueira da Foz
Championship leader Thierry Neuville kicked off Vodafone Rally De Portugal 2024 with a stage win. As the Belgian posted a time 0.6 seconds faster than Sebastien Ogier to top the stage. Ott Tänak and Takamoto Katsuta tied for third fastest on the stage, with both drivers finishing two seconds slower than Neuville and 1.4 seconds slower than Ogier. Kalle Rovanperä rounded out the top five times on the opening stage, finishing 0.4 seconds slower than Tänak and Katsuta.
What To Expect From Vodafone Rally De Portugal Day Two
The second day of Vodafone Rally De Portugal is where the action truly gets underway. Drivers will contest 126.90 km across eight stages. The day’s longest stage will be the 18.72 km Agranil stage. While the shortest is the 12.28 km Lousã stage. Drivers may opt to drive more on the side of caution. As the day doesn’t feature a midday service. In addition to not having a midday service. Drivers will have to use the same tires as day one’s SuperSpecial stage for the morning loop. This will add an additional challenge for the drivers during the opening loop of four stages. Thierry Neuville will be on road sweeping duties as he leads the championship. Elfyn Evans will be second and Adrien Fourmuax third on the road.
The fifth round of the 2024 WRC season Vodafone Rally De Portugal 2024 takes place this weekend. Here are my predictions for this weekend’s event.
Tänak Wins
Ott Tänak has had a rough start to the year. As the 2019 World Champion is without a podium so far this season. Tänak is hoping to use Vodafone Rally De Portugal 2024 to get back into the championship picture for this season. Currently, Tänak sits over 20 points behind his championship rivals in Thierry Neuville and Elfyn Evans. Tänak won the event back in 2019 with Toyota. The Estonian will have to fend off Kalle Rovanperä who will be hungry for his second win of the season.
Rovanperä Wins Over 10 Stages
Reigning Rally Portugal winner Kalle Rovaneprä will be in the fight for the event win as per usual this weekend. Rovanperä has won the last two editions of the event. Taking home 9 stage wins in 2022 and 11 in 2023. This makes predicting Rovanperä winning more than 10 stages an easy thing. There’s a reason he’s a two-time champion, it’s because he’s fast. Obviously, things can go wrong over the course of the weekend. As this is rally after all. That being said Rovanperä makes very few costly mistakes. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see Tänak and Rovanperä exchange stage wins this weekend, and I still believe Tänak will come out on top.
Sordo Finishes On The Podium
The Spanish driver has done really well at Rally Portugal in recent years and nothing suggests the 2024 edition will be any different. Over the last three years, Sordo has finished second twice and third once. The 41-year-old will look to step on the podium once again this weekend. It won’t be an easy feat, especially when you consider Sordo’s last WRC appearance was in Japan last season.
Solberg Takes WRC2 Win
Oliver Solberg is arguably the fastest driver in the WRC2 class this season. Last season Solberg led the event until the end of day three when he received a penalty for doing donuts during the SuperSpecial stage. This handed Gus Greensmith the event lead and eventual win. However, Solberg was able to claw back time and nearly take the lead back on the event’s final stage. The Swede ended the event 1.2 seconds behind Greensmith. I wouldn’t be surprised if Solberg takes the win this year.
The 2024 World Rally Championship season continues this weekend with Vodafone Rally De Portugal.
Championship Rundown
Thierry Neuville still holds the drivers’ championship lead heading into the fifth round of the season. Neuville has held the championship lead since his win in Rallye Monte-Carlo to kick off the season. The Belgian holds a 6-point lead over last year’s championship runner-up Elfyn Evans heading into Vodafone Rally De Portugal. Adrien Fourmaux sits third in the championship 27 points behind Neuville and 21 points behind Evans. Ott Tänak is fourth in the championship, 6 points behind Fourmaux. Sebastien Ogier and Takamoto Katsuta round out the top five in the championship, with both sitting 8 points behind Tänak.
Team Rundowns
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Toyota currently leads the manufacturers’ championship heading into the fifth round of the season. The team holds a 7-point lead over Hyundai. The Japanese Manufacturer heads into Portugal looking to maintain their momentum from the previous two events. Historically Toyota has done good at the event since returning to the WRC in 2017. Winning the event four times since 2017 (the event was not run in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic). Toyota will roster a four-car team for the first time this season. With full-timers, Elfyn Evans and Takamoto Katsuta being joined by five-time Rally Portugal winner Sebastien Ogier and reigning Rally Portugal winner Kalle Rovanperä. The team has elected for Katsuta to not score points this weekend.
Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT
Hyundai sits second in the manufacturers’ championship after a strong start to the season with wins at both the Rallye Monte-Carlo and Rally Sweden. Since Sweden, the team only has one podium. This was achieved by Thierry Neuville last time out in Croatia. The Korean manufacturer will run a three-car team as per usual this weekend. With regulars Thierry Neuville and Ott Tänak being joined by Dani Sordo for the first time this season. Ott Tänak who has had a rough start to the season is hoping to put himself back in the championship picture this weekend. The Estonian won the event back in 2019 on the way to winning his first and only world championship.
M-Sport Ford WRT
M-Sport Ford has surprised many to start the year. As many thought the team wouldn’t be able to achieve any podiums this season. A rejuvenated Adrien Fourmuax has proven them wrong. As the Frenchman has finished on the podium twice so far this season. Fourmaux will head into this weekend looking to take home another podium. On the flip side, Grégoire Munster has had a rough start to the season. Only achieving a handful of top five stage times through this point.
What To Expect From Vodafone Rally De Portugal
Drivers will contest a total of 337.04 km across 22 special stages.
Day One
The first day of the event will see drivers take on a 2.94 km SuperSpecial stage to kick off the event. Nothing much should come from this stage, at most only a couple of seconds are lost.
Day Two
The second day of Vodafone Rally De Portugal is where the action truly gets underway. As drivers will contest 126.90 km across eight stages. Thierry Neuville will get road sweeping honours on the day unless he has an issue before or during the day. The day’s longest stage will be the 18.72 km Agranil stage. While the shortest is the 12.28 km Lousã stage. Drivers may opt to drive more on the side of caution. As the day doesn’t feature a midday service.
Day Three
The third day of the event is also the longest, as drivers will contest 145.02 km across another eight stages. The third day’s longest stage is the monster 37.24 km Amarante stage which will push drivers to their limits. While the shortest stage is the 8.69 km Montim stage. The day will feature a single 44-minute service between the two loops.
Day Four
The fourth and final day of Vodafone Rally De Portugal will see drivers contest 62.18 km across 4 stages. The longest of these stages is the 19.91 km Cabeceiras de Basto stage. While the shortest is the famed 11.18 Fafe stage, which will serve as the Wolf Powerstage.
The fourth and final day of Croatia Rally 2024 has come to an end. Sebastien Ogier took home the event win.
SS17, Trakošćan – Vrbno 1
Takamoto Katsuta kicked off the final day with his first stage win of the weekend. Katsuta set a time 1.8 seconds faster than Adrien Fourmaux to top the stage. Elfyn Evans was third fastest on the stage, 2.8 seconds slower than Katsuta and one second slower than Fourmaux. Ott Tänak finished fourth quickest on the stage, 2.2 seconds slower than Evans. Thierry Neuville rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 0.1 seconds slower than Tänak.
SS18, Zagorska Sela – Kumrovec 1
Ott Tänak claimed the stage win on the second stage of Croatia Rally 2024’s final day. With a time 1.1 seconds faster than Takamoto Katsuta to top the stage. Sebastien Ogier finished third fastest on the stage, 1.5 seconds slower than Tänak and 0.4 seconds slower than Katsuta. Andreas Mikkelsen set the fourth-fastest time, 3.5 seconds slower than Ogier. Grégoire Munster rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 3.5 seconds slower than Mikkelsen.
SS19, Trakošćan – Vrbno 2
Takamoto Katsuta also took the stage win on the second running of the Trakošcan – Vrbno stage. This time around Katsuta was 0.6 seconds faster than Elfyn Evans to top the stage. Ott Tänak was third fastest, 0.8 seconds slower than Katsuta and 0.2 seconds slower than Evans. Sebastien Ogier set the fourth fastest time on the stage, 2.5 seconds slower than Tänak. Andreas Mikkelsen rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 2.4 seconds slower than Ogier.
SS20, Zagorska Sela – Kumrovec 2
Adrien Fourmaux took home the stage win on the powerstage of Croatia Rally 2024. As Fourmaux set a time 3.8 seconds faster than Ott Tänak to top the stage. Sebastien Ogier finished third fastest on the stage five seconds slower than Fourmaux and 1.2 seconds slower than Tänak. Takamoto Katsuta posted the fourth fastest time, 1.6 seconds slower than Ogier. Elfyn Evans rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 1.6 seconds slower than Katsuta.
Chaotic SS18
For the most part, Croatia Rally 2024 was drama-free, that was until SS18. When all but one of the top five drivers had an issue. Fourmaux broke his steering rack, luckily he was able to get it fixed and secure both his Saturday points and the Powerstage win. Thierry Neuville wasn’t so lucky. As a crash on SS18 left the Belgian without half of his rear wing. Add that to a Hybrid issue on SS19 and Neuville was out of the running for the event win. Elfyn Evans had a spin on SS18 losing just under 20 seconds to Ogier. Finally, Ott Tänak went off the road slightly after a jump, luckily no major damage was caused.
Earlier today it was confirmed that Mārtiņš Sesks will contest Rally Poland and Rally Latvia in a Rally1 Puma.
A Golden Ticket
2023 European Rally Championship Vice-Champion Mārtiņš Sesks will get an opportunity to drive a Rally1 Puma in Rally Poland and his home event of Rally Latvia. Sesks has been one of the top stars in the ERC in recent years. As previously mentioned he finished second in the championship last season, between two former WRC stars Hayden Paddon and Mads Østberg. This opportunity for Sesks has been partially funded by the WRC Promotor. This is a part of the championship’s attempt to get more drivers into a Rally1 car. Sesks is expected to join M-Sport regulars Adrien Fourmaux and Grégoire Munster at the two events.
Sesks History
Mārtiņš Sesks began his rally career in 2013 in Latvia. Since then Sesks has worked his way through the ranks in Latvia and surrounding countries like Estonia. In 2017 Sesks made a one-off appearance in the ERC Junior category where he placed 2nd in class at his home event of Rally Latvia. In 2018 he contested a full Junior ERC season, winning the Junior and ERC3 championships. Between 2019 and 2021, Sesks contested the full WRC Junior championship, finishing 10th in 2019, 2nd in 2020 and 3rd in 2021. In 2022 Sesks made his top-flight ERC debut and took home his first ERC event win at none other than Rally Latvia.
A Hybrid-Less Car
Mārtiņš Sesks will drive a hybrid-less Rally1 Puma at Rally Poland. This is for him to learn the car without the added hybrid boost before getting a full hybrid car in Latvia. This will be the first time a hybrid-less Rally1 car will contest a WRC event since it was allowed before the season. However, it is worth noting Alberto Heller ran with the hybrid unit disconnected for part of Rally Chile Bio Bio last season.
What To Expect From Sesks
It’s unlikely Sesks will be one of the top runners at Rally Latvia. As he will still have a huge experience deficit in the car. However, he will have much more experience with the roads and the event. This likely won’t offset the lack of experience in the car. Nevertheless, Sesks could surprise and set some top five or top three stage times at the event. It’s also worth noting that Sesks has won Rally Latvia in the ERC the past two seasons. As far as Rally Poland goes, Sesks will be the slowest Rally1 car. This is because of the previously mentioned hybrid-less car. How much slower the car will be without the hybrid is unknown. In a fast-flowing event like Poland, the lack of hybrid boost will be much more noticeable than in a more technical event like Greece.
The second day of Croatia Rally 2024 has come to a close. Thierry Neuville has taken sole lead of the event after the day’s eight stages.
SS9, Smerovišće – Grdanjci 1
Adrien Fourmaux kicked off the day with his first stage win of the weekend. As the Frenchman set a time 0.5 seconds faster than Thierry Neuville to top the stage. Sebastien Ogier was the third fastest on the stage, one second slower than Fourmaux and 0.5 seconds slower than Neuville. Ott Tänak finished fourth fastest on the stage, 0.1 seconds slower than Ogier. Elfyn Evans rounded out the top five on the day’s opening stage, 0.2 seconds slower than Tänak.
SS10, Stojdraga – Gornja Vas 1
Sebastien Ogier took home the stage win on the tenth stage of Croatia Rally 2024. Ogier posted a time 0.3 seconds faster than Thierry Neuville and Elfyn Evans who tied for second on the stage. Takamoto Katsuta set the fourth fastest time on the stage, 0.1 seconds slower than Neuville and Evans. Ott Tänak rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 5.7 seconds slower than Katsuta.
SS11, Vinski Vrh – Duga Resa 1
Thierry Neuville took his first stage win of the day on SS11. Neuville set a time 0.9 seconds faster than Elfyn Evans to take the stage win. Sebastien Ogier finished third fastest on the stage, 1.6 seconds slower than Neuville and 0.7 seconds slower than Evans. Ott Tänak was fourth fastest on the stage, 0.1 seconds slower than Ogier. Adrien Fourmaux rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 0.5 seconds slower than Tänak.
SS12, Pećurkovo Brdo – Mrežnički Novak 1
Thierry Neuville also claimed the stage win on the final stage of the morning loop. As Neuville posted a time 2.9 seconds faster than Sebastien Ogier to top the stage. Elfyn Evans and Ott Tänak tied for third fastest on the stage, with both drivers finishing three seconds slower than Neuville and 0.1 seconds slower than Ogier. Adrien Fourmaux rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 2.1 seconds slower than Evans and Tänak.
SS13, Smerovišće – Grdanjci 2
Elfyn Evans ended Neuville’s stage win streak with a stage win of his own on SS13 of Croatia Rally 2024. As Evans set a time one second faster than Sebastien Ogier to claim the stage win. Thierry Neuville finished third fastest on the stage, 6.7 seconds slower than Evans and 5.7 seconds slower than Ogier. Takamoto Katsuta set the fourth fastest time on the stage, 1.1 seconds slower than Neuville. Andreas Mikkelsen rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 5.1 seconds slower than Katsuta.
SS14, Stojdraga – Gornja Vas 2
Thierry Neuville answered Evans stage win with a stage win of his own. As the Belgian posted a time 3.9 seconds faster than Sebastien Ogier to claim the stage win. Elfyn Evans was third fastest on the stage, 4.3 seconds slower than Neuville and 0.4 seconds slower than Ogier. Takamoto Katsuta finished fourth quickest on the stage, 3.2 seconds slower than Evans. Ott Tänak rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 1.8 seconds slower than Katsuta.
SS15, Vinski Vrh – Duga Resa 2
Thierry Neuville also took home the stage win on the penultimate stage of the day. With a time 1.6 seconds faster than Sebastien Ogier to top his second consecutive stage. Elfyn Evans finished third fastest on the stage, 1.7 seconds slower than Neuville and 0.1 seconds slower than Ogier. Ott Tänak set the fourth fastest time on the stage, 1.6 seconds slower than Evans. Adrien Fourmaux rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 0.8 seconds slower than Tänak.
SS16, Pećurkovo Brdo – Mrežnički Novak 2
Thierry Neuville capped off the penultimate day with yet another stage win. As Neuville set a time 0.5 seconds faster than Sebastien Ogier to win the stage. Elfyn Evans finished third fastest, 0.9 seconds slower than Neuville and 0.4 seconds slower than Ogier. Ott Tänak was fourth fastest on the stage, 1.6 seconds slower than Evans. Takamoto Katsuta rounded out the top five, finishing with a time 1.3 seconds slower than Tänak.
What To Expect From Croatia Rally 2024 Day Three
The third and final day of the Croatia Rally will see drivers contest 54.78 km across four stages. The longest stage of the day is the 14.24 km Zagorska Sela-Kumrovec stage which is the second stage of each loop and will serve as the Powerstage. While the shortest stage of the day is the 13.15 km Trakošćan-Vrbno stage which is the first stage of each loop. Thierry Neuville takes a 4.9-second lead over Eflyn Evans into the final day. Sebastien Ogier is third overall, 11.6 seconds behind Neuville and 6.7 seconds behind Evans. Ott Tänak is a minute and 3.9 seconds out of a podium spot. While Adrien Fourmaux rounds out the top five 19.9 seconds behind Tänak. Grégoire Munster will once again be the first car on the road followed by Andreas Mikkelsen and Takamoto Katsuta.
A Close Battle
Just 11.6 seconds separate first and third overall. Heading into the final day’s four stages there is no clear-cut winner. Thierry Neuville could win, Eflyn Evans could win the event again and Sebastien Ogier could have his 100th career podium be an event win. This could very well come down to the Powerstage. Something we have yet to see this season and something we haven’t seen happen in a while. Croatia Rally 2024 has been an incredibly close battle throughout the first two days and nothing is saying the final day won’t be the same.
The first day of Croatia Rally 2024 has come to an end. Elfyn Evans and Thierry Neuville lead the event after the day’s eight stages.
SS1, Krašić – Sošic 1
Hyundai driver Thierry Neuville topped the first stage of the weekend. As the championship leader set a time 6.6 seconds faster than Toyota driver Elfyn Evans. Sebastien Ogier finished third fastest on the stage, 14.5 seconds slower than Neuville and 7.9 seconds slower than Evans. Ott Tänak was the fourth fastest on the stage, 3.3 seconds slower than Ogier. Adrien Fourmaux rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 2.6 seconds slower than Tänak.
SS2, Jaškovo – Mali Modruš Potok 1
Elfyn Evans answered Thierry Neuvile’s push with a stage win of his own on the second stage of Croatia Rally 2024. As the Welshman posted a time 1.7 seconds faster than Neuville to win his first stage of the weekend. Ott Tänak finished third fastest, 2.4 seconds slower than Evans and 0.7 seconds slower than Neuville. Adrien Fourmaux set the fourth fastest time on the stage, 1.8 seconds slower than Tänak. Sebastien Ogier rounded out the top five on the event’s second stage, finishing 0.6 seconds slower than Fourmaux. Thierry Neuville retained the event lead despite Evans winning the stage. Neuville now has a 4.9-second lead over Evans after the first two stages. Sebastien Ogier sits third overall, 17.6 seconds behind Neuville and 12.7 seconds behind Evans. Ott Tänak sits 0.9 seconds out of a top-three spot in fourth.
SS3, Ravna Gora – Skrad 1
Thierry Neuville claimed his second stage win of the day on the first run of the Ravna Gora-Skrad stage. Neuville set a time 3.5 seconds faster than Elfyn Evans to claim the stage win. Sebastien Ogier finished third fastest on the stage, 3.6
seconds slower than Neuville and 0.1 seconds slower than Evans. Adrien Fourmaux posted the fourth fastest time on the stage 4.9 seconds slower than Ogier. Ott Tänak rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 3.1 seconds slower than Fourmaux. Thierry Neuville expanded his event lead to 8.4 seconds over Elfyn Evans after winning the stage. Sebastien Ogier retained third overall, now sitting 21.2 seconds behind Neuville and 12.8 behind Evans.
SS4, Platak 1
Thierry Neuville also claimed the stage win on the final stage of the morning loop. As the championship leader posted a time 0.2 seconds faster than Elfyn Evans to claim his third stage win of the day. Sebastien Ogier finished third fastest on the outing, 0.3 seconds slower than Neuville and a mere 0.1 seconds behind his teammate Elfyn Evans. Ott Tänak was fourth fastest on the stage, as Tänak set a time 6.9 seconds slower than Ogier. Adrien Fourmaux rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing three seconds slower than Tänak. Thierry Neuville once again expanded his lead over Elfyn Evans. As Neuville ended the morning loop with an 8.6-second lead over Evans. Sebastien Ogier retained third to end the loop, with the Frenchman now sitting 21.5 seconds behind Neuville and 12.9 seconds behind Evans.
SS5, Platak 2
Thierry Neuville kicked off the afternoon loop of Croatia Rally 2024’s first day in the same fashion as the morning loop, with a stage win. This time around Neuville set a time 1.5 seconds faster than Elfyn Evans to win his third consecutive stage. Sebastien Ogier was once again third fastest on the stage, 5.4 seconds slower than Neuville’s benchmark and 3.9 seconds behind Evans. Adrien Fourmaux posted the fourth-fastest time on the stage, five seconds slower than Ogier. Ott Tänak rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 0.4 seconds slower than Fourmaux. Thierry Neuville expanded his lead to 10.1 seconds over Evans after the stage. Sebastien Ogier maintained his position after the stage, now sitting 26.9 seconds behind Neuville and 16.8 seconds behind Evans.
SS6, Ravna Gora – Skrad 2
Elfyn Evans brought Neuville’s stage win streak to an end on the sixth stage of Croatia Rally 2024. As the reigning event winner posted a time 1.1 seconds faster than Sebastien Ogier to claim the stage win. Ott Tänak finished third fastest on the outing, two seconds slower than Evans and 0.9 seconds slower than Ogier. Adrien Fourmaux was fourth fastest on the stage, setting a time 3.8 seconds slower than Tänak. Thierry Neuville rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 4.2 seconds slower than Fourmaux. Elfyn Evans was able to cut Thierry Neuville’s lead down to just 0.1 seconds from 10.1 seconds. All advantage Neuville had is gone and it’s basically back to square one. Sebastien Ogier did retain his position yet again, with the former event winner now sitting 18 seconds behind Neuville and 17.9 seconds behind Evans.
SS7, Jaškovo – Mali Modruš Potok 2
The penultimate stage of the first and longest day of Croatia Rally 2024 saw Sebastien Ogier take his first stage win of the weekend. As the Frenchman set a time 0.3 seconds faster than Elfyn Evans to claim the stage win. Ott Tänak finished third fastest on the stage, 1.7 seconds behind Ogier and 1.4 behind Evans. Thierry Neuville posted the fourth fastest time, 0.3 seconds slower than Tänak. Adrien Fourmaux rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 5.1 seconds slower than Neuville. Elfyn Evans was able to take the event lead despite not winning the stage. Evans now holds a 1.6-second lead over Neuville heading into the day’s final stage. Ogier was once again able to cut the gap between him and second and now sits 17.6 seconds behind Evans and 16 behind Neuville.
SS8, Krašić – Sošic 2
Sebastien Ogier ended the first day with his second stage win of the weekend. Ogier posted a time 9.2 seconds faster than Adrien Fourmaux to top the stage. Thierry Neuville finished third fastest on the stage, 9.4 seconds slower than Ogier and 0.2 seconds slower than Fourmaux. Takamoto Katsuta was fourth fastest on the stage, 1.1 seconds slower than Neuville. Ott Tänak rounded out the top five on the stage, finishing 0.2 seconds slower than Katsuta. Thierry Neuville was able to close the lead between himself and Elfyn Evans to tie for the lead at the end of the day. Ogier ended the day 6.6 seconds behind in third.
What To Expect From Croatia Rally 2024 Day Two
The second of three days will see drivers contest 108.76 km across another eight stages. The longest stage on the day is the 20.77 km Stojdraga-Gornja Vas stage which is the second stage of each loop. While the shortest stage of the day is the 8.78 km Vinski-Duga Resa stage which is the third stage of each loop. Unlike the first day the second day will feature one midday service for the drivers, the length of this service is 40 minutes. As previously mentioned Thierry Neuville and Elfyn Evans head into the second day in a tie for the lead. Ogier sits 6.6 seconds behind the pair. Ott Tänak sits fourth overall heading into the second day, 41.1 seconds behind Neuville and Evans and 34.5 seconds behind Ogier. Adrien Fourmaux rounds out the top five overall. As the Frenchman sits 11.6 seconds behind Tänak. Grégoire Munster will be first on the road, Andreas Mikkelsen will be second and Takamoto Katsuta third.
The Croatia Rally 2024 shakedown stage has come to a close. Sebastien Ogier was the fastest driver in the Rally1 class.
Shakedown Run One
Hyundai’s Ott Tänak kicked off his event with the fastest time on the first run of shakedown. The Estonian posted a time 0.4 seconds faster than his teammate and championship leader Thierry Neuville. Toyota drivers Sebastien Ogier and Elfyn Evans tied for third on the first run of shakedown. As both Ogier and Evans finished 2.1 seconds slower than Tänak and 1.7 seconds slower than Neuville. M-Sport driver Adrien Fourmaux rounded out the top five on the first run, finishing 0.1 seconds slower than Ogier and Evans.
Shakedown Run Two
Eight-time World Champion Sebastien Ogier was fastest on the second run of the Croatia Rally 2024 shakedown stage. As the Frenchman set a time 1.4 seconds faster than Thierry Neuville and Ott Tänak. Elfyn Evans finished with the fourth fastest one second slower than Neuville and Tänak. Adrien Fourmaux once again rounded out the top five, finishing 0.1 seconds slower than Evans.
Shakedown Run 3/4
Only a handful of drivers did a third and fourth run of shakedown. Therefore I am going to put them both in the same section, otherwise, there would only be one driver in the fourth run slot. Elfyn Evans was fastest on the third run of the shakedown stage. As the 2023 Croatia Rally winner set a time 0.9 seconds faster than Ott Tänak. Andreas Mikkelsen finished third fastest, 1.6 seconds slower than Tänak and 2.5 seconds slower than Evans. Takamoto Katsuta was the slowest on the third and fourth runs of shakedown. As the Japanese driver finished 4.6 seconds slower than Mikkelsen.
What To Expect From Day One
The first day of Croatia Rally 2024 will see drivers contest 119.74 km across eight stages. The longest of the day’s stages is the 23.63 km Krašić-Sošice stage which is the final stage of each loop. While the shortest is the 9.48 km Jaškovo-Mali Morduš Potok stage which is the third stage of each loop. Day one will feature a single tire fitting zone between the two loops and no service. Thierry Neuville will be first on the road as he leads the championship. Normally this would be a disadvantage to drivers. However, due to the Croatia Rally being a tarmac event, it can actually be an advantage. This is a result of having a clean road. As more cars contest the stage the more mud, dirt and gravel will get pulled out onto the road due to cutting. Elfyn Evans is second on the road, followed by Adrien Fourmaux.
The fourth round of the 2024 WRC season the Croatia Rally is upon us, below I will give some predictions for the event.
Neuville Wins
It’s no secret that Thierry Neuville is one of the best if not the best driver on tarmac in the WRC. Elfyn Evans may have won two of the four tarmac events last season, including the Croatia Rally. Neuville has been much more consistent on tarmac throughout his career. As the Belgian has won 10 events on tarmac since 2014. Whilst Evans has only on two since 2014. Predicting a Neuville win may seem like a low-risk prediction, and for the most part, it is. However, the 35-year-old has never won the event. Neuville’s best finish at the event is third in both 2021 and 2022. Neuville has had a spectacular start to the 2024 season. Winning the Rallye Monte-Carlo to kick off the season and then finishing fourth and fifth in Sweden and Kenya respectively.
Tänak Bounces Back
Ott Tänak has had a rather disappointing start to his 2024 season compared to his Hyundai teammate Thierry Neuville. As the 2019 World Champion has yet to complete an event without an incident costing him loads of time. In Monte-Carlo, it was a simple slide off the road which cost him a decent chunk of time. In Sweden an off forced Tänak to retire early into the event. Finally in Kenya, a rock sent Tänak’s i20 flying into a berm. Tänak isn’t out of the championship race yet despite him sitting 34 points behind Neuville and 28 behind Elfyn Evans, his two biggest championship rivals this season. That being said Tänak will need a strong result in Croatia to maintain a decent chance at the championship heading into the middle of the season. I wouldn’t be shocked if Tänak finishes on the podium this weekend.
Munster Will Impress
Grégoire Munster hasn’t had a great start to the 2024 season. This isn’t much of a surprise, however. As this is Munster’s first full season in a Rally1 car. Granted the 25-year-old did contest two events in a Rally1 car last season. Nevertheless, a slow start for Munster isn’t much of a surprise. Munster was doing good in Monte-Carlo before he got stuck on the side of the road and was forced into a Super Rally. There is a reason I believe Munster will shine this weekend. That reason is because Munster has always been relatively good on Tarmac. I’m not expecting a podium finish from Munster, however, a top-five finish could be in the cards.
Rossel Takes WRC2 Win
Yohan Rossel has won the WRC2 class at the Croatia Rally every time it’s been a part of the championship excluding 2021 when Mads Østberg won the event. Due to this picking Rossel to win the WRC2 class again this weekend isn’t a hard choice. Especially when the start of this season has been identical to the start of last season. Rossel took home the win in Monte-Carlo once again, Solberg won in Sweden and Greensmith won the third event of the year. This also makes Rossel an easy choice to predict as the winner for this weekend’s event. Much like Monte-Carlo, Rossel will have to fend off Nikolay Gryazin and Pepe López. This is in addition to names such as Sami Pajari, Gus Greensmith, Niclas Ciamin and Emil Lindholm, all of which can hold their own on Tarmac.
The fourth round of the 2024 WRC season, the Croatia Rally is upon us. Find out all you need to know about the event below.
Drivers’ Championship Rundown
Hyundai’s Thierry Neuville leads the championship after the first three events of the season. The Belgian holds a 6-point lead over Toyota’s Elfyn Evans. Both Neuville and Evans were favourites to win the championship heading into the season alongside Ott Tänak. M-Sport’s Adrien Fourmaux who has had a stunner of a season thus far sits third in the championship, 21 points behind Neuville and 15 behind Evans. On the other hand, Hyundai’s Ott Tänak has had a less-than-desirable start to the season. As the 2019 World Champion has yet to finish in a podium position. Nevertheless, Tänak sits 13 points behind Fourmaux. Reigning champion Kalle Rovanperä rounds out the championship top five heading into the Croatia Rally. Rovanperä sits just 2 two points behind Tänak, However, Rovanperä will not contest this weekend’s event.
Manufacturers’ Championship Rundown
Despite only having one win under their belt this season the Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT tops the manufacturers’ championship heading into the Croatia Rally. Toyota holds a four-point lead over the Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT. M-Sport Ford rounds out the top three in the championship sitting 55 points behind Hyundai and 59 points behind Toyota.
Event Rundown
Conditions
Conditions at the Croatia Rally are expected to vary throughout the weekend. As Friday is expected to be clear and dry for the most part. On Saturday it is expected to rain which would make the stages wet during the day, and they will likely be wet again on Sunday. It is worth noting this could entirely change, as conditions during recce were similar to Monte-Carlo’s. Anything is possible, drivers and teams will have to adapt on the fly as they do every weekend.
Day One
The first day of the Croatia Rally will see drivers contest 119.74 km across eight stages. The longest of the day’s stages is the 23.63 km Krašić-Sošice stage which is the final stage of each loop. While the shortest is the 9.48 km Jaškovo-Mali Morduš Potok stage which is the third stage of each loop. Day one will feature a single tire fitting zone between the two loops and no service.
Day Two
The second of three days will see drivers contest 108.76 km across another eight stages. The longest stage on the day is the 20.77 km Stojdraga-Gornja Vas stage which is the second stage of each loop. While the shortest stage of the day is the 8.78 km Vinski-Duga Resa stage which is the third stage of each loop. Unlike the first day the second day will feature one midday service for the drivers, the length of this service is 40 minutes.
Day Three
The third and final day of the Croatia Rally will see drivers contest 54.78 km across four stages. The longest stage of the day is the 14.24 km Zagorska Sela-Kumrovec stage which is the second stage of each loop and will serve as the Powerstage. While the shortest stage of the day is the 13.15 km Trakošćan-Vrbno stage which is the first stage of each loop.