While Adrien Fourmaux saw the podium escape him in the last special, Sébastien Ogier added the Paraguay rally to his record. The Gapençais reinforces its status as a candidate for the world title in the front of the Devançais Elfyn Evans and Thierry Neuville.
Sébastien Ogier did not tremble. After taking advantage of the puncture of Kalle Rovanperä to take control of the Paraguay rally this Saturday, the octuple world champion ignores the rain which made the race conditions very complicated to seek a fourth victory in seven tests played this season. A first position that the Gapençais comforted from ES16, the first run this Sunday.
While his compatriot and Dauphin Adrien Fourmaux lost almost 20 seconds in a track exit caused by a track made difficult to apprehend by the weather, Sébastien Ogier signed the best time and pushed the Hyundai pilot to just under 30 seconds. A special that also saw Elfyn Evans go to the fault and give in third place to Ott Tänak. Won by Thierry Neuville, ES17 did not jostle the hierarchy. This was not the case with ES18, the second passage in the timed sector of Bella Vista.
Fourmaux lost big
If Kalle Rovanperä has signed the best time for three tenths of a second against Sébastien Ogier, Adrien Fourmaux saw his second place being always more threatened. Victim of a loss of power after the passage of a ford due to the water entering the engine, the native of Seclin saw his closest continuing to return to three seconds. But it was not Ott Tänak, victim of a new puncture that he put on the account of the Korean manufacturer Hankok, of which it is the first season as a single supplier of WRC tires.
Elfyn Evans took the opportunity to seize third place when Thierry Neuville also won a place at the expense of his Estonian teammate. With a margin of 40 seconds before the “Power Stage”, Sébastien Ogier decided to ensure his victory in the general classification over the last 18.5 kilometers of the rally, which were disturbed by the rain.
Ogier more than ever in the title race
If Thierry Neuville took the five bonus points reserved for the winner of this final timed sector despite a damaged car by the too harsh reception of a jump, the Gapençais was satisfied from the tenth time to just under 20 seconds, having made its passage on a soggy track. Adrien Fourmaux, on the other hand, conceded only a little more than nine seconds to the Belgian but it was sufficient to eject it from the podium. At the end of these 19 specials, Sébastien Ogier offers Toyota his 102th WRC victory, equaling the record set by Citroën.
His teammate Elfyn Evans and Thierry Neuville accompany him on the podium when Adrien Fourmaux fails to get on it for less than two seconds. Taking three points for the “Super Sunday” and two points for the “Power Stage” in addition to the 17 of his second place to the General, Elfyn Evans maintained himself at the top of the championship but his advance on Sébastien Ogier and Kalle Rovanperä is reduced to only nine points to four rounds from the end of the season.
