Hyundai’s Thierry Neuville spoiled Jari-Matti Latvala’s Toyota’s day at the Monte Carlo World Rally.
Jari-Matti Latvala’s pedestrian crossings have plenty of work space on Sunday in Monte. Juuso Taipale
Toyota’s WRC team started the race day of Monte Carlo on Saturday in the double lead, but in the evening the top spot of the race was wrinkled Thierry Neuville. The Belgian star started his attack right from the morning and got into the Toyota by Elfyn Evans and Sebastien Ogier’s to the position.
At the end of the afternoon’s run, Neuville broke an amazing record time, with which he moved into first place with a difference of 3.3 seconds to Ogier. At the same time, the Hyundai driver secured a conditional 18-point pot, because in the new points system, the first points are already distributed on Saturday evening to the ten best in the general competition.
In order to get the points, the drivers still have to get through Sunday’s stages and finish in Monaco.
Neuville and Evans are championship favorites this season. Toyota team boss Jari-Matti Latvala revealed that Evans did not want to ride Saturday afternoon’s special stages with the limits of risk like Neuville and Ogier.
– Elfyn gave up during the lunch break and did not join the attack. On Friday, he was the first car on the road, but now the situation evened out as they drove in similar starting positions. He didn’t want to take risks, but started thinking about more points, Latvala said.
Elfyn Evans left the risk-taking to others on Saturday afternoon. PDO
Neuville’s rise to the top also meant that Hyundai has even better points for the Manufacturers’ World Series.
– It’s a bit sad, because Ogier was so close. I was pretty sure that Ogier could win today. But somehow Thierry dug more compression for the last clip.
– But you shouldn’t think too much about points yet, because there are so many conditional things here. We just have to think that we will race tomorrow (Sunday) and then see what the final result will be. Now the difference is so small that tomorrow we have to race all the time. Tomorrow’s fastest is also the winner of the rally, Latvala said.
Lots of points to share
The demandingness of the Monte Carlo routes is well known to WRC drivers. PDO
On Sunday, there will still be separate daily points for the seven best. The fastest driver on the final day will receive seven points and the seventh will receive one surface.
In addition, additional points are available in the Power Stage clip as before.
Latvala estimates that the race’s top two will be burning gas at the bottom even with Sunday’s three fast laps. Hyundai also has a say With Ott Tänakwho is fourth in the race.
– Neuville will definitely attack, because winning this race is important to him. Elfyn is probably thinking more about points and I don’t think he will attack very much. In addition, Tänak and Ogier have a tough job ahead of them. Neuville certainly has more to lose than Ogier, but I’m sure he doesn’t think about it, Latvala said.
Ogier will only drive part of the season’s World Cup rallies.
Three special tests will be run on Sunday, the final day of the rally.
Monte Carlo World Rally Championship
Situation after the 14/17 special exam
1. Thierry Neuville, Hyundai 2.37.58.5 (gets 18 MM points)
2. Sébastien Ogier, Toyota +3.3 (15 p)
3. Elfyn Evans, Toyota +34.9 (13 p)
4. Ott Tänak, Hyundai +1.46.9 (10 p)
5. Adrien Fourmaux, Ford +2.54,0 (8 p)
6. Andreas Mikkelsen, Hyundai +4.21.2 (6 p)
(* The points are conditional. The driver must finish on Sunday to get them.)