WRC Safari Rally: Rovanpera leads, punctures delay Ogier and Evans

The championship leader was sitting third overall behind Evans and Ogier after the morning loop of stages, before tyre dramas struck his team-mates in the afternoon.

Despite opening the road, Rovanpera won the final stage of the day to claim his third stage win of the event to move into a 22.4s lead over Evans.

Such was the attrition of the tough gravel event that Hyundai’s Ott Tanak managed to reach service in third spot, 25.3s adrift, despite losing 36.4s to a snapped gear lever in the morning.

Toyota’s Takamoto Katsuta completed the day’s six stages in fourth ahead of Thierry Neuville (Hyundai), while Ogier dropped 2m21.6s to change a punctured left rear, leaving the eight-time world champion in sixth overall.

Hyundai’s Oliver Solberg will start Saturday seventh overall, while Gus Greensmith was the only M-Sport team Ford Puma running in 12th after losing 13 minutes to a right rear puncture in the morning.

A disastrous day for M-Sport was compounded by Sebastien Loeb, Craig Breen and Adrien Fourmaux all suffering mechanical retirements. Loeb exited the rally in the morning after running out of EV power on a road section, having lost his internal combustion engine to a small fire.

The afternoon began with a lead change as the left rear on Evans’ GR Yaris began to deflate seven kilometres from the stage end, costing the Welshman 18.7s and the rally lead.

Ogier won stage by 4.3s from Katsuta, which gave him an 8.2s advantage over his Japanese team-mate.

Rovanpera was third fastest ahead of the recovering Tanak and Neuville, the latter having lost time to a loss of power in the morning and continuing to battle the drivability of his car during the afternoon.

Ogier held the lead until a puncture on the final stage of the