Dani Sordo is back into second place on Rallye Monte-Carlo after going 6.1s faster than rival Petter Solberg on Thursday’s final stage. However, there was drama when Sebastien Ogier suffered a high-speed crash in his Volkswagen Motorsport Skoda Fabia Super 2000.
Ogier and co-driver Julien Ingrassia were uninjured in the incident approximately five kilometres from the stage finish but their impressive run on the World Rally Championship season-opener - they were sixth overall at the time - is over.
Elsewhere, a fifth-fastest stage time of the day for Sebastien Loeb means the eight-time world rally champion has grown his overall lead to 1m37.5s.
Loeb, who took 14m00.1s to complete the test, said: “It was really good, no problem at all. Today was easier than yesterday, more like a normal Tarmac rally but it was still tricky because it was very muddy in places. But I’m feeling good and I will try to push. I don’t know what will happen tomorrow and with the conditions suiting me I tried to take everything I can.”
Sordo was six seconds slower than Loeb in his MINI John Cooper Works WRC. He told World Rally Radio: “I always lose a lot of time at the first splits but then I take a bit of time and I don’t understand. I try to drive very clean and I will try to continue our battle with Petter tomorrow but the weather may be difficult so we will see.”
Solberg, who dropped to third in his Ford Fiesta RS WRC after recording a time of 14m12.2s, said: “There was so much mud in some places and I really struggled. That’s the only thing I can think of. We’ve lost second but it’s a long way to go.”
M-Sport Fiesta driver Evgeny Novikov is now 6.0s behind Citroen’s Mikko Hirvonen in the fight for fourth after another solid effort by the young Russian. Hirvonen, meanwhile, said: “In some areas I’m making progress and finding a rhythm but when it’s slippery I don’t have the confidence. But the more mileage I get the more confident I get.”
Francois Delecour completed the stage with a smoking Fiesta. He was 24.7s down on Loeb’s best time but keeps seventh position.
MINI driver Pierre Campana has overtaken Ott Tanak for eighth after the Estonian’s Fiesta stalled at the stage start and refused to fire up for several seconds.
A 45-minute service halt in Valence now awaits the crews. Friday’s action gets underway with the 23.28-kilometre St Jean en Royans - Font d’Urle test at 10:02hrs local time. There is talk of rain and even snow affecting tomorrow’s route.