2024-08-01 18:36:31
Belgian Thierry Neuville, the leader of the WRC world rally championship, took the lead of the Rally of Finland on Thursday after the first short special, ahead of the Japanese Takamoto Katsuta (Toyota) in the morning of this 9th round (out of 13) of the season.
In Jyväskylä, the center of one of the most famous rounds on the calendar, the Hyundai driver beat Katsuta by 1/10 of a second, while the Estonian Ott Tänak took the third place of the provision, 3/10 of a second behind his teammate in the Hyundai.
Eight-time world champion Sébastien Ogier, who worked part-time with Toyota, was 4th, ahead of his Finnish teammate Kalle Rovanperä, 5th, less than two minutes behind Neuville.
In the land of a thousand lakes – his territory – the two world champion Rovanperä, the winner of the last two rounds (in Poland and Latvia), is the favorite, even if he has not been accepted in the elite.
The meeting will reach the heart of the matter on Friday, with nine special stages contested during the day, and will end on Sunday after 20 special stages, with more than 300 kilometers in total time.
Overall, Neuville is only eight points ahead of his runner-up Ott Tänak – a gap that rises to 13 points with Briton Elfyn Evans (Toyota), third in the championship but only 8th on Thursday evening.
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