Luca Rossetti has moved into the lead of Rali Vinho Madeira by going fastest through stage three, the 21.77-kilometre Terreiros stage.
The Italian, a four-time winner in the Intercontinental Rally Challenge, opted for a hard compound tyre for the first loop of stages. While the choice was not ideal for the damp opening stage, they worked perfectly for the dry second stage, which he won by 6.5s from previous leader Freddy Loix.
But there was high drama on the stage when Bruno Magalhães (pictured) crashed out on a right-hand bend. His Peugeot 207 landed at the foot of a small drop after vaulting a road-side barrier. Although the car was badly damaged, Magalhães and co-driver Carlos Magalhães were uninjured.
Overnight leader Kris Meeke is third after losing time when his Peugeot’s brakes began to fade seven kilometres from the finish of the stage.
Crews are now heading to service north of Funchal.
Overall positions after SS3:
| Pos. | Team | Car | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Rossetti Luca / Chiarcossi Matteo | Fiat Grande Punto S2000 | 25m30.7s |
| 02 | Loix Freddy / Miclotte Fréderic | Škoda Fabia S2000 | +1.8s |
| 03 | Meeke Kris / Nagle Paul | Peugeot 207 S2000 | +4.9s |
| 04 | Kopecký Jan / Starý Petr | Škoda Fabia S2000 | +12.7s |
| 05 | Hänninen Juho / Markkula Mikko | Škoda Fabia S2000 | +16.1s |
| 06 | Nunes Miguel / Calado Victor | Peugeot 207 S2000 | +25.9s |
| 07 | Campos Miguel / Monteiro Aloisio | Ford Fiesta S2000 | +31.1s |
| 08 | Sousa Bernardo / Silva Nuno | Ford Fiesta S2000 | +32.3s |
| 09 | Sá Vítor / Rodrigues Nuno | Peugeot 207 S2000 | +32.6s |
| 10 | Silva Joăo / Janela José | Renault Clio R3 | +1m21.4s |
| 11 | Moura Ricardo / Costa Antonio | Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX | +1m25.1s |
| 12 | Freitas Filipe / Figueiroa Daniel | Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X | +1m29.1s |
| 13 | Magalhăes Joăo / Pereira Jorge | Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X | +1m30.7s |
| 14 | Peres Pedro / Ferreira Tiago | Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX | +1m39.4s |
| 15 | Pinto Rui / Faria Luis | Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX | +1m44.2s |