Leg report
WRC Rally Wales GB
Just 46 kilometres left to go…
Fighting for a place on the podium at Wales Rally GB, Kris Meeke/Paul Nagle and Mads Østberg/Jonas Andersson ended day two in third and fourth positions in the overall standings.
Edited: Nov 15, 2014, 11:10 PM
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Wales Rally GB revealed another side to its character today, as the crews tackled narrower, drier roads in the north of the country. The conditions gave the DS3 WRC crews the chance to showcase their talents.
As they fought for third position in the overall standings, Kris Meeke and Mads Østberg profited from Jari-Matti Latvala’s off to move up a place on the first stage of the day.
Among the frontrunners throughout the morning, Kris Meeke returned to midday service in third place, less than a second behind Mikko Hirvonen.
Holding a podium spot after SS11, Mads Østberg was then handed a ten-second penalty for checking in late at the start of the next stage and saw his team-mate move back ahead of him.
I really pushed today, but a couple of minor mistakes cost us a few seconds.
Kris Meeke
In the afternoon, the duel between Hirvonen and Meeke intensified. Kris claimed a stage win on Clocaenog East 2 (SS14) to grab second place. A spin near the end of the second night stage meant he held third place as the cars were driven into parc ferme. However, since he is only 3.4 seconds behind Hirvonen, the fight is far from over.
A tyre problem cost Mads Østberg around twenty seconds on SS16. He ended the day in fourth position.
Tenth in the WRC2 at the halfway stage of the rally, Stéphane Lefebvre’s learning experience at Wales Rally GB came to an end on SS14.
In the FIA Junior WRC, Alastair Fisher controlled from the front in his DS3 R3. He moved closer to a second consecutive win as he ended day two ahead of Martin Koči and Simone Tempestini.
The final leg of the rally features six stages. With no service periods, the crews will set off at 7.05am to tackle the final 46 kilometres of timed stages. The second pass on Brenig will serve as the Power Stage at 12.00pm, before the crews head to Llandudno for the last podium ceremony of the season at 1.19pm.
Quote, unquote
Kris Meeke: “We really enjoyed the stages. The roads were magnificent, especially on the night stages. It’s a great fight with Mikko. I really pushed today, but a couple of minor mistakes cost us a few seconds. The aim is still to secure second place in the championship for Citroën. And I want to keep learning for the future.”
Mads Østberg: “Once again, we were very fast in the morning loop. On SS16, the tread on the rear left-hand tyre became really worn on a very quick section. We continued to drive for another four or five kilometres, trying to not break anything and lose as little time as possible. Tomorrow, we’ll have to defend our position. I know we’ll need to push again.”
Standings after day 2
1. Sébastien Ogier / Julien Ingrassia (Volkswagen Polo R WRC) 2:33:19.3
2. Mikko Hirvonen / Jarmo Lehtinen (Ford Fiesta RS WRC) +58.1
3. Kris Meeke / Paul Nagle (Citroën DS3 WRC) +1:01.5
4. Mads Østberg / Jonas Andersson (Citroën DS3 WRC) +1:41.2
5. Thierry Neuville / Nicolas Gilsoul (Hyundai i20 WRC) +1:44.5
6. Elfyn Evans / Daniel Barritt (Ford Fiesta RS WRC) +1:52.4
7. Ott Tanak / Raigo Molder (Ford Fiesta RS WRC) +2:33.3
8. Jari-Matti Latvala / Miikka Anttila (Volkswagen Polo R WRC) +3:28.1
9. Henning Solberg / Ilka Minor (Ford Fiesta RS WRC) +3:37.4
10. Martin Prokop / Jan Tomanek (Ford Fiesta RS WRC) +3:54.5
Citroën Racing
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