If the remainder of the 2020 FIA World Rally Championship’s opening event, the legendary Rallye Monte-Carlo, was as thrilling as the opening 42.96km on Thursday night, it will go down in the history books as one of the best…
After the 88th Rallye Monte-Carlo got off to its ceremonial start at Monaco’s picturesque harbour, the world’s best rally drivers took on two night-time stages split over 42.96km. Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team’s Ott Tänak/Martin Järveoja swept the dry roads clean as the first car to enter the first stage of 2020 WRC, but the reigning World Rally Champions were immediately under threat from six-time champions Sebastien Ogier/Julien Ingrassia (Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team), who set the fastest stage time, 1.8s ahead of Tänak. Ogier’s team-mates Elfyn Evans/Scott Martin claimed the third fastest stage time, underlining the speed of the Toyota Yaris WRC. Thierry Neuville/Nicolas Gilsoul (Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team) finished Stage 1 in fourth.
Stage 1 – Top 5
1.Ogier 09m 53.4s, 2.Tänak +1.8s, 3.Evans +1.9s, 4.Neuville +6.4s, 5.Rovanperä +10.2s
The first five crews through the stage benefited from their road position, while WRC cars starting behind them suffered from gravel pulled onto the racing line from to make turning in that bit more sketchy. Unfortunately for M-Sport Ford fans, three of the Cumbrian squad’s four World Rally Cars of Teemu Sunninen/Jarmo Lehtinen, Esapekka Lappi/Janne Ferm and Gus Greensmith/Elliott Edmondson suffered with overheating engines at the finish line of Stage 1: leaves blocking their air intakes.
Stage 2 of the rally saw the leader board completely jostled as crews battled for grip with their different tyre selections. With each stage kilometre and corner different from the previous and next, levels of grip can change dramatically. Ogier, Tänak, Neuville and Loeb were the only crews of the ten WRC cars to tackle the opening two stages without studded tyres. The unpredictable nature of this rally showed itself on Stage 2 in which Tänak saw his road sweeping duties severely punish his speed.: Team-mate Neuville trounced him by more than 25s to take the overnight lead from Ogier in second, nearly 20s behind the Belgian.
Stage 2 – Top 5
1.Neuville 16m 23.7s, 2.Ogier +4.2s, 3.Tänak +29.7s, 4. Evans +29.9s, 5.Loeb +46.5s
A visibly quicker Neuville caught his rivals unawares with a blitzed stage time to lead the field by 19.1s going into the overnight halt. Ogier now sits second overall with Tänak third, 25.1s off the lead. The pace at this early point of the rally, and with 261.32km of special stages lying in wait over the next three days, the expected Hyundai versus Toyota battle will make for fascinating rallying action.
Woes continue for the M-Sport Ford World Rally Team as Finn Teemu Sunninen stopped just seven kilometers into SS2 with a failed gearbox. The other two Ford Fiesta RS WRCs of Greensmith and Lappi completed the second stage undeterred by their first stage dramas.
In the nail-biting WRC2/3 categories for R5 Class cars, it is already shaping up to be a five-way fight as Eric Camilli/Francois-Xavier Buresi (Citroën C3 R5), Mads Østberg/Torstein Eriksen (Citroën C3 R5), Adrien Fourmaux/Renaud Jamoul (Ford Fiesta R5 MkII), Yoann Bonato/Benjamin Boulloud (Citroën C3 R5) and Ole Christian Veiby/Jonas Andersson (Hyundai i20 R5), while the young Oliver Solberg/Aaron Johnston (Volkswagen Polo GTI R5) is coming to grips with the Monte’s conditions and unique challenges. Camilli leads Østberg by only one second after two stages with Stéphan Sarrazin/Kevin Parent (Hyundai i20 R5) third.
Action gets underway tomorrow with a morning loop of three stages repeated after a midday Service. With the weather conditions fast-changing, Friday’s six stages might bring a new rally leader.
Classification After SS2:
1. Thierry Neuville/Nicolas Gilsoul (Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC) 26m 23.5s
2. Sébastien Ogier/Julien Ingrassia (Toyota Yaris WRC) +19.1s
3. Ott Tänak/Martin Järveoja (Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC) +25.1s
4. Elfyn Evans/Scott Martin (Toyota Yaris WRC) +25.4s
5. Sébastien Loeb/Daniel Elena (Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC) +51.0s
6. Esapekka Lappi/Janne Ferm (Ford Fiesta WRC) +1m 07.8s
7. Kalle Rovanperä/Jonne Halttunen (Toyota Yaris WRC) +1m 18.5s
8. Eric Camilli/François-Xavier Buresi (Citroën C3 R5) +1m 58.6s
9. Mads Østberg/Torstein Eriksen (Citroën C3 R5) +1m 59.6s
10. Stéphane Sarrazin/Kévin Parent (Hyundai i20 R5) +2m 19.6s
