SS4: Casamozza - Ponte Leccia 2: Cancelled
Saturday's opening stage of the Tour de Corse - Rallye de France has been cancelled due to storm damage.
The first run through the 43.69km Casamozza - Ponte Leccia test was scrapped on Friday afternoon after landslides damaged the roads.
The test was scheduled to open Saturday's second leg, which will now start at 1008hrs with the repeat of the 36.43km stage from Francardo to Sermano which ended Friday's action.
After service in Corte, it will be followed at 1352hrs by Muracciole - Col de Sorba, at 48.46km the longest stage of the rally, before the final overnight halt in Porto-Vecchio.
click:
wrc.com/ss4-cancelled/
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SS5: Latvala closes on leader Evans
Jari-Matti Latvala rocketed to fastest time through Saturday morning’s opening stage at Tour de Corse - Rallye de France to climb to second and slash overnight leader Elfyn Evans advantage to just 1.7sec.
Following the cancellation of the opening stage due to flood damage from Friday’s storms, drivers faced just a repeat of yesterday’s final test before service in Corte.
Clear skies and sun meant exposed sections of the mountain roads were dry with good grip, but in the shade there was a slimy layer of dirt. Most drivers opted for Michelin’s soft compound tyres but felt conditions were worse than yesterday.
“It was more difficult because there was a bigger contrast between the grippy and slippery sections,” explained Latvala. “I had a couple of small moments, it was so, so slippery under the trees. Evans was fast on this stage yesterday so I knew I had to up my pace.”
Evans was 21.2 sec slower in seventh in his Ford Fiesta RS and echoed Latvala’s thoughts. “It was really tough. It’s like there is a film on the road,” said the Welshman.
Andreas Mikkelsen was second fastest in his Volkswagen Polo R to leap from seventh to third, 27.8sec off the lead and 1.3sec ahead of Kevin Abbring. The Dutchman dropped from second in his Hyundai i20, admitting his choice of hard tyres was a mistake.
“I don’t think hard tyres were much slower but the middle 15km were worse than I expected and I couldn’t get enough heat into the rubber,” said Abrring, who drove on a slow puncture for the final 7km.
Fourth fastest enabled Citroen’s Kris Meeke to leap from eighth to fifth, 4.5sec ahead of team-mate Mads Ostberg, who regretted changing his DS 3’s set-up in the expectation of better grip.
Robert Kubica retired from fifth with two punctures and just one spare wheel in his Fiesta RS, while Stephane Sarrazin dropped a place to seventh after lacking power in his similar car.
click:
wrc.com/corsica-ss5/
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SS6:
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Latvala edges ahead of Evans in Corsica
Jari-Matti Latvala overcame a late gearbox problem to edge ahead of Elfyn Evans and lead the Tour de Corse - Rallye de France after Saturday’s second leg.
Latvala switched to the manual gearshift system in his Volkswagen Polo R during the final speed test. Although that cost time, the Finn did enough to end the penultimate leg 2.0sec clear of surprise pacesetter Evans.
Storm damage forced the cancellation of the opening stage for a second day. But Latvala rocketed through the next test to slash Evans’ 22.9sec overnight advantage to just 1.7sec, before gaining the initiative in the final 48.46km stage near Corte, the longest of the rally.
“I had a problem with the gearbox shifting down and lost my rhythm,” said Latvala. “It was difficult under braking because I couldn’t trust the gears. I had to use the manual shift but we got through and now we need to change the gearbox.”
Evans, chasing a maiden WRC win in his Ford Fiesta RS, wasn’t as confident as yesterday. “I didn’t have the same rhythm. I went well in some places but not in others and it was difficult to be confident, but it’s all still to play for tomorrow,” he said.
Yesterday’s downpours were replaced by sunshine, leaving exposed mountain roads dry this morning while those in the shade were covered by a slippery layer of slime. The contrast in grip was greater than in persistent rain and conditions proved equally as difficult.
Andreas Mikkelsen catapulted from seventh to third in a Polo R, which understeered through the last stage. He was 30.8sec off the lead and 22.8sec ahead of Kris Meeke, who followed him up the leaderboard from eighth to fourth in Citroen’s DS 3.
Kevin Abbring, second last night, dropped to fifth in his Hyundai i20. He admitted his gamble of hard tyres this morning was a mistake, compounded by a slow puncture, and the Dutchman felt his afternoon set-up was too conservative.
Sixth was Mads Ostberg, the Norwegian losing time this morning when his DS 3 was set-up for drier conditions. Hayden Paddon, Bryan Bouffier, Stephane Sarrazin, who lost turbo boost and bent a steering arm, and Ott Tänak completed the leaderboard.
Sebastien Ogier, who retired late last night with a gearbox problem, restarted in 55th place and won the final stage en route to 24th.
After an overnight halt in Porto-Vecchio, Sunday’s final leg comprises three more stages covering 94.91km, now the longest of the rally. The final 16.74km test from Bisinao to Agosta Plage comprises the live TV Power Stage with bonus points for the fastest three drivers.
click:
wrc.com/corsica-saturday
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