Evans, new leader in Portugal; Dani Sordo, third

Welshman Elfyn Evans (GR Yaris Rally 1) knocked out Belgian Thierry Neuville (Hyundai i20 N) and led the Rally de Portugal after his second stage, where Spaniard Dani Sordo (i20 N Rally 1) ) was third after a day in which Sebastien Loeb (Ford Puma) and Sebastien Ogier (Toyota Yaria) left.

The fourth round of the World Championship suffered some shocks on its second day with the loss of two key riders. Loeb was left after hitting a concrete wall when he was leading, while Ogier retired after experiencing two holes that prevented him from continuing.

After the same retirement, the afternoon session successfully continued for Evans, who surpassed all his rivals on a day of heat, dust and hard tracks that ended the Welshman’s victory in four of eight stages.

Evans ’low position at the start allowed him to benefit from better grip on the tracks traversed by previous entrants. In contrast, the World Championship leader, Finn Kalle Rovanperä, suffered worse track conditions after completing his start before his teammate.

However, Rovanperä was second in the standings, just over 13 seconds behind Evans, while Dani Sordo took advantage of the problems of a large number of drivers to take third place in the standings 44 seconds behind Evans. And it is, aside from the retirements of Loeb and Ogier, that names like Ott Tänak, Craig Breen, with two holes, or Neuville, who lost a tire and lost nearly two minutes, have gone through different recessions.

This Saturday, the longest stage of the rally will take place. In the Cabreira mountains, there will be two runs through the Vierira do Minho, Amarante (over 37 kilometers) and Cabeceiras de Basto stages. In addition, the special between Porto and Foz will be played in one day that will cover a total of 165 kilometers.

Classification day 2

1. Elfyn Evans – Scott Martin (GBR/Toyota) 1h25’43 “3
2. Kalle Rovanperä – Jonne Halttunen (FIN/Toyota) with 13 “6
3. Dani Sordo – Candido Carrera (ESP/Hyundai) at 44 “4
4. Takamoto Katsuta – Aaron Johnston (JPN -IRL/Toyota) at 49 “6
5. Gus Greensmith-Jonas Andersson (GBR-SWE/M-Sport Ford) at 1’00 ”7
6. Pierre-Louis Loubet-Vincent Landais (FRA/M-Sport Ford) at 1’15 “6
7. Thierry Neuville – Martijn Wydaeghe (BEL/Hyundai) at 1’46 “4
8. Craig Breen – Paul Nagle (IRL/M -Sport Ford) at 1’49 ”3
9. Adrien Fourmaux – Alexandre Coria (FRA/M -Sport Ford) at 2’03 “6
10. Ott Tänak – Martin Järveoja (EST/Hyundai) at 3’38 “4
SPECIALS WON
Evans (ES2, ES3, ES6, ES9)
Loeb (ES4)
Ogier (ES5)
Rovanpera (ES7, ES8)
DROPOUTS:
Sébastien Loeb – Isabelle Galmiche (FRA/M -Sport Ford)
Sébastien Ogier – Benjamin Veillas (FRA/Toyota)