Latest news with #OttTanak
Reuters
8 hours ago
- Automotive
- Reuters
Tanak leads in Greece after a day of heat and punctures
June 27 (Reuters) - Hyundai's Ott Tanak ended the first full day of the Acropolis Rally with a slender three second lead over teammate Adrien Fourmaux as the Greek heat and rough roads left rivals struggling to keep up. Tanak stayed out of trouble to lead on Friday night despite not winning any of the seven gravel stages in temperatures in excess of 40 degrees Celsius. "At times it was difficult to keep everything in one piece but I think in the end we must be happy that we didn't have any big trouble with the tyres or with the car," said the Estonian. Hyundai's reigning champion and last year's Acropolis winner Thierry Neuville led after stage three but then dropped three minutes after collecting two punctures, before taking the day's final stage to end the day eighth. Toyota's Takamoto Katsuta and Kalle Rovanpera also lost time with tyre problems. Teammate and eight-times world champion Sebastien Ogier was in third place, 16.9 seconds behind Tanak after leading up to stage five, and won two stages to Fourmaux's three. The Frenchman's championship-leading teammate Elfyn Evans was fourth and Gregoire Munster fifth for M-Sport Ford. Katsuta and Rovanpera were sixth and seventh.
The Star
8 hours ago
- Automotive
- The Star
Rallying-Tanak leads in Greece after a day of heat and punctures
(Reuters) -Hyundai's Ott Tanak ended the first full day of the Acropolis Rally with a slender three second lead over teammate Adrien Fourmaux as the Greek heat and rough roads left rivals struggling to keep up. Tanak stayed out of trouble to lead on Friday night despite not winning any of the seven gravel stages in temperatures in excess of 40 degrees Celsius. "At times it was difficult to keep everything in one piece but I think in the end we must be happy that we didn't have any big trouble with the tyres or with the car," said the Estonian. Hyundai's reigning champion and last year's Acropolis winner Thierry Neuville led after stage three but then dropped three minutes after collecting two punctures, before taking the day's final stage to end the day eighth. Toyota's Takamoto Katsuta and Kalle Rovanpera also lost time with tyre problems. Teammate and eight-times world champion Sebastien Ogier was in third place, 16.9 seconds behind Tanak after leading up to stage five, and won two stages to Fourmaux's three. The Frenchman's championship-leading teammate Elfyn Evans was fourth and Gregoire Munster fifth for M-Sport Ford. Katsuta and Rovanpera were sixth and seventh. (Reporting by Alan Baldwin in London, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
Irish Examiner
12 hours ago
- Automotive
- Irish Examiner
Irish crew endure tough seventh round of World Rally Championship
It didn't take long for the Irish crew of Josh McErlean and Eoin Treacy to experience the brutal nature of the EKO Acropolis Rally Greece where two deflations cost them time and places before they eventually finished the day in twelfth place in this seventh round of the World Rally Championship. Overnight, Estonian Ott Tanak (Hyundai i20 N Rally1) leads his teammate French ace Adrien Fourmaux by just three seconds with another French driver Sebastien Ogier (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) 13.9s further behind in third. Thursday night's super special stage in Athens was delayed for an hour and 23 minutes due to 'severe traffic congestion' on the road from Lamia to Athens where the transporters carrying the competing cars were caught up in the delay. Tanak and Ogier set equal time on the 0.9-mile test where McErlean was tenth - 3.2s behind as the Kilrea driver remarked: "It will be tough on the mountains and really hot. I'll try my best." Unfortunately, he didn't have to wait too long to find out when they were forced to stop and change a punctured wheel after hitting a rock - losing some two and half minutes and dropping to fortieth position on the day's opening stage. They arrived at the remote service (after SS4) in 17th place. Out front, Ogier, who finished SS4 with a partial wheel deflation, held a 6.1s lead over Ott Tanak, whose Hyundai team mate Adrien Fourmaux was third. Neuville, who led after SS3, lost some 40s with a front left wheel puncture with little rubber on the rim at the stage finish. McErlean's Ford Puma also sustained a puncture on SS4. "It's brutal but we'll keep fighting." To his credit, the Kilrea man had his best stage result on SS5 (seventh) but his passage through the day's penultimate stage wasn't without problems. "We lost the read out (gear selection display) on the dashboard, I didn't know what gear I was in." Neuville punctured again (on SS5) and had to stop and change the wheel before he ended the day with a stage win to slot into eighth - over two and half minutes off top spot. A consistent Tanak moved in front on SS6 but team mate Fourmaux, who found a great rhythm on the closing stages, narrowed the deficit to just 3s and reckoned, were it not for the dust on the morning's first stage, he should be leading. On his prospects, third placed Ogier declared: "I have nothing to lose." Championship leader Elfyn Evans, who was sweeping the roads, was fourth overnight. Heading to the day's final stage the Irish crew of Eamonn Kelly/Conor Mohan (Ford Fiesta rally3) were third overall in the Junior category. There are six stages today (Saturday) and four on Sunday. EKO Acropolis Rally Greece (Round 7, World Rally Championship) Lamia: 1. O. Tanak/M. Jarveoja (Hyundai i20 N Rally1) 1m. 25m. 07.4s 2. A. Fourmaux/A. Coria (Hyundai i20 N Rally)+3.0s 3. S. Ogier/V. Landais (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1)+16/9s 4. E. Evans/M. Scott (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1)+1m. 21.5s 5. G. Munster/L. Louka (Ford Puma Rally1)+1m. 43.0s 6. T. Katsuta/A. Johnston (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1)+2m. 34.3s 7. K. Rovanpera/J. Halttunen (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1)+2m. 38.1s 8. T. Neuville/M. Wydaeghe (Hyundai i20 N Rally1)+2m. 38.3s 9. O. Solberg/E. Edmondson (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2)+2m. 48.4s 10. K. Kajetanowicz/M. Szczepaniak (Toyota GR Yaris Rally)+3m. 41.8s 11. G. Greensmith/J. Andersson (Skoda Fabia RS Rally2)+3m. 44.8s 12. J. McErlean/E. Treacy (Ford Puma Rally1)+4m. 14.5s.
CNA
08-06-2025
- Automotive
- CNA
Rallying-Ogier edges Tanak to win in Sardinia, Evans stays top
Sebastien Ogier clinched a record fifth Rally Italy victory on Sunday, fending off Hyundai's Ott Tanak by 7.9 seconds after a tense final stage in Sardinia, while Toyota teammate Elfyn Evans stayed top of the championship standings. Ogier, with co-driver Vincent Landais, completed the sixth round of the season in three hours 34 minutes and 24.5 seconds to secure the Frenchman's third win in four starts in a part-time campaign. The eight-times world champion was beaten by Tanak on the island last year by 0.2 seconds after a final-stage puncture but this time Ogier stayed composed and took the win despite a late wobble. Ogier had built a 17.1-second cushion heading into the Wolf Power Stage, but the 41-year-old overshot a tight, rutted corner in the final kilometres. This forced him to stop and reverse after his car refused to turn, cutting his advantage by more than half in a tense finale. "In the ruts, I just couldn't turn the car," Ogier explained. "There was no speed at all, so I didn't try to force it and hit it - I preferred to stop and reverse. But yeah, not ideal. Still, it was enough to win." The victory follows hot on the heels of his Rally Portugal triumph and sent Ogier second in the championship with 114 points to Evans' 133. Toyota, who have won every rally so far this year, also tightened their grip on the manufacturers' race with 312 points to Hyundai's 243. "There are many places I've won several times," said Ogier. "It's just a type of rally I like, where precise driving is needed, but also smoothness for tyre management. Thanks to the team, great turnaround after Portugal in terms of speed and set-up, so good job." Tanak pushed hard in the final stage but fell short, while Kalle Rovanpera, clawing his way up from fifth during Saturday's stages, completed a double podium for Toyota in third, 50.5 seconds behind Ogier. The Finn dropped to third overall, one point behind Ogier, with Tanak fourth on 108. Evans and Takamoto Katsuta rounded out a strong showing for Toyota, taking fourth and fifth respectively. Hyundai's reigning champion Thierry Neuville, fifth in the championship on 83 points, took four points from the Power Stage and one from the 'Super Sunday' format after returning following Friday's retirement. The next round is in Greece on June 26-29.
Yahoo
08-06-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Third win for Ogier with victory in Rally of Sardinia
Sebastien Ogier won the Rally of Sardinia for a fifth time to move second in the world championship standings (Andreas SOLARO) Eight-time world champion Sebastien Ogier picked up his third win of the season with victory in the Rally of Sardinia on Sunday. The Toyota driver, who is not competing in the full 14 rounds of the WRC, began the day 17 seconds ahead of Ott Tanak (Hyundai), enabling him to control the rally from the front until a late error almost cost him the win. Advertisement On the final stage, Ogier failed to turn into a tight corner carved with deep ruts and was forced to stop and reverse before restarting. "In the ruts, I just couldn't turn the car," said Ogier. "There was no speed at all, so I didn't try to force it and hit it. I preferred to stop and reverse. Not ideal. Still, it was enough to win." Ogier's fifth win in Sardinia and his 64th career victory lifts him to second in the title race, 19 points behind leader Elfyn Evans, who could only finish fourth in his Toyota. "We have to be satisfied with this weekend," said a positive Evans who lost time with a wheel change on Saturday. Advertisement "We didn't have any major problems and we're in the championship battle with these guys (who finished ahead of him). They were very fast." The Estonian Tanak closed the gap to Ogier to 8sec but had to settle for second ahead of another Toyota driver, Finland's Kalle Rovanpera who came in 50sec off the lead and drops to third in the title race, a point behind Ogier. It was Toyota's sixth victory in six rallies this season and meant the same podium for the second rally running following Portugal in mid-May. Takamoto Katsuta (Toyota) rounded out the top five while reigning world champion Thierry Neuville (Hyundai) went off the road on Friday's fifth stage and finished outside the points in 19th position. The next round of the WRC is the Acropolis Rally which takes place in Greece at the end of June. cpb/ig/bsp/pi
