SS18: Latvala edges clear of Loeb

Ford driver wins stage to increase margin over Citroen rival

Jari-Matti Latvala has extended his lead of Wales Rally GB to seven and a half seconds after winning Sunday’s first test, the mixed-surface 14.93-kilometre Halfway blast.

Driving a Ford Fiesta RS WRC for the Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team, Latvala said: “It’s looking good. I think it was good to be running first on the road. There was one place where it was quite slippery and it made the heart beat faster.”

Loeb was 1.4s slower than Latvala in his Citroen Total World Rally Team DS3 WRC. “Everything is okay but Jari-Matti is very fast,” said the French driver. “I’m pushing very hard but there is nothing to do at the moment. The asphalt section was clean, no problem.”

Mads Ostberg, who is third in his M-Sport Stobart Fiesta on the World Rally Championship finale, said: “We’re working on securing the third position without any risks. We still have engine problems but we can definitely cope with it by turning down the power and not overusing it.”

Kris Meeke continues to close the gap to fourth-placed Henning Solberg. “I want to catch Henning but I need to get it home,” said the MINI John Cooper Works WRC driver, who is now 35.1s behind the Norwegian. “At least I know the grip is there.”

Crews will now head to the 22.73-kilometre Crychan test, which gets underway at 08:06hrs local time.