Thierry Neuville, representing Hyundai, maintained his lead in the Rally of Croatia despite a setback with a puncture, while Toyota’s Elfyn Evans clinched two late stages to equal Neuville’s time on Friday.
Neuville, who leads the world championship, initially dominated four of the day’s eight stages, securing an 8.6-second lead over Evans and a 21-second lead over Sebastien Ogier.
The competition intensified when Neuville suffered a puncture during the sixth stage, which took place on the challenging muddy and hilly terrain near Zagreb. “I did what I could; it wasn’t our best day,” Neuville remarked after completing the 120km course, finishing the day tied with Evans, last year’s Croatia winner.
Despite the day’s challenges, Neuville remains optimistic about his performance in Saturday’s eight special stages. He anticipates a different rally experience, expecting slower and more slippery conditions over the 108km of winding hill roads.
Kalle Rovanpera, the double world champion from Toyota, was absent from this fourth event in the world championship series.
Neuville is vying for his second win of the season following his victory in Monte Carlo and currently leads Evans by six points in the world championship standings.
The standings as of Friday night are as follows:
- Thierry Neuville/Martijn Wydaeghe (BEL/Hyundai) – 1hr 05min 15.3sec
- Elfyn Evans/Scott Martin (GBR/Toyota) – same time
- Sebastien Ogier/Vincent Landais (FRA/Toyota) – 6.6sec behind
- Ott Tänak/Martin Järveoja (EST/Hyundai) – 41.1sec behind
- Adrien Fourmaux/Alexandre Coria (FRA/M-Sport Ford) – 52.7sec behind
Reported By AFP.
