WRC – Breen, Tänak in close chase for Sweden success

WRC – Breen, Tänak in close chase for Sweden success

Sport news

Even a rapid performance wasn’t enough for Craig Breen to widen his advantage over Ott Tänak, despite outperforming his rival on two out of Saturday morning’s three stages on Rally Sweden.

Impressive runs over the opening pair of snowy stages enabled Breen to pull 5.7s clear of his M-Sport Ford rival on round two of the FIA World Rally Championship, but a lack of experience on the closing Sävar stage undid the Irishman’s hard work.

By dropping 2.7s to Tänak over the 17.28-kilometre test, Breen, who is co-driven by James Fulton, was pretty much back to where he started the day – just 3.0 clear at the top.

“Unfortunately, it’s one of those instances where I never got to do this stage last year and this was my first time discovering it,” the Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid driver explained. “There were places I was a little too cautious and hesitant, but it’s fine.

“The car worked well on the second pass yesterday, so I’m absolutely full of confidence,” Breen added, feeling optimistic about today’s four remaining stages.

Tänak admitted to feeling uncomfortable behind the wheel of his Ford Puma Rally1 Hybrid, although the more twisty characteristics of the final test did seem more suited to the car. He heads into this afternoon’s second pass 14.0s clear of Esapekka Lappi.

Lappi wasn’t entirely satisfied with his morning efforts as overnight set-up tweaks seemed to do more harm than good to the handling of his i20. The Finn plans to revert to his Friday set-up for this afternoon’s loop.

Another 10.3s behind is Kalle Rovanperä, who fought with understeer after overnight suspension alterations didn’t work in his favour. Despite his frustrations, the Finn did manage to seize fourth overall from Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrid team-mate Elfyn Evans on SS10. Evans’ confidence was lacking, and he leaked time to those around him. Hyundai’s Thierry Neuville – the winner of SS9 – has piled on the pressure and completed the loop a mere second in arrears of the Welshman.

Ford Puma youngster Pierre-Louis Loubet remains a lonely seventh overall while FIA WRC2 frontrunners Oliver Solberg (Škoda Fabia RS Rally2), Ole Christian Veiby (Volkswagen Polo GTI R5) and Jari Huttunen (Škoda) complete the top 10. Sami Pajari, who had been second in the category, dropped down the order due to a high-speed spin but still heads the WRC2 Challenger classification. William Creighton leads FIA WRC3 and FIA Junior WRC, while Michał Sołowow is the driver to beat in WRC Masters.

Rally Sweden continues with the rerun of Norrby, a 12.54-kilometre stage, from 14h05 CET.

 

World Rally Championship

Rally SwedenWRCSEASON 2023SportRallies1SportWorld Rally ChampionshipRalliesWRCSEASON 2023Rally Sweden01Saturday, February 11, 2023 – 1:14pmSaturday, February 11, 2023 – 1:14pm

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WRC – Breen edges Tänak in Rally Sweden thriller

WRC – Breen edges Tänak in Rally Sweden thriller

Sport news

Craig Breen tops the leaderboard after a frantic Friday on Rally Sweden, but a fast-finishing Ott Tänak is hot on his heels.

The Irishman trailed the man who replaced him at M-Sport Ford for the first half of the day before unleashing an early afternoon charge, establishing control as his low starting position offered superior traction on the increasingly rutted second pass.  

He outpaced the entire field by 7.8s on Brattby 2 to go in front, then extended his buffer to 10.5s with another benchmark time on the very next test. Tänak, however, fought back as darkness fell, reducing the overnight deficit to just 2.6s heading into Saturday’s second leg.

Breen, who is contesting a part-programme aboard a Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid this season, was unperturbed by Tänak’s late charge.

“It’s definitely been one of my strongest days,” he said. “Last year I was usually upside down or stuck in a hedge somewhere, so it’s music to my ears to be in the lead tonight. It’s the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party and we’re all invited – I can’t wait for tomorrow.”

Although Tänak’s pace represented a significant step-up compared with last month’s Rallye Monte-Carlo, the Estonian was not overly positive at close of play. He was pushing his Puma to the absolute limit but felt like the stage times didn’t reflect this.

“Result-wise, we can definitely be quite happy. It’s much more than we expected coming here. But the thing is that we could be a lot better.”

Esapekka Lappi made it two Hyundai cars inside the top three with a solid drive on his second rally for the team. A high-speed spin after overshooting a junction on SS6 was the only real slip-up for the Finn, who trails Tänak by just 8.6s at the overnight halt in Umeå.

A further 15.3s behind in fourth overall is Elfyn Evans, the highest-placed Toyota Gazoo Racing driver. He initially struggled for confidence on the fast-paced stages but improved throughout the day, surviving a brush with an infamous snowbank while climbing the leaderboard.

Evans’ ascent was partially aided by the fact that team-mate Takamoto Katsuta rolled his GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrid on the second pass of Brattby. The Japanese retired shortly afterwards with radiator damage, putting an end to what had been a promising start.

Kalle Rovanperä, leader following Thursday night’s opener, dropped down the order after spending the day on road-opening duties. Grip was hard to come by for the defending champion as he swept a clean line in the loose snow. He trails colleague Evans by just 4.6s.

Sixth overall wasn’t where an under-the-weather Thierry Neuville had intended to be after the first eight stages, but the Belgian could do no more as he battled with understeer on his Hyundai. Superficial damage to the front and rear aero – inflicted by various run-ins with snowbanks – didn’t help matters.

Pierre-Louis Loubet made some major strides in his Puma, gaining confidence with every stage as he got to grips with snow and ice. A top-two time on SS5 was proof of the Frenchman’s development and he arrived back to Umeå a respectable seventh overall.

FIA WRC2 stars Oliver Solberg, Sami Pajari and Jari Huttunen complete the top 10 with William Creighton ahead in FIA Junior WRC followed by Laurent Pellier.

Crews journey north and east of Umeå for Saturday’s second leg – the longest of the rally at 126.22 kilometres – for three repeated stages. At 12.54 kilometres, Norrby is a Rally Sweden newcomer and is one of three stages to take place before and after the Umeå service halt with the first pass due at 08h05 CET. The 28.25-kilometre Floda stage is the event’s longest.

 

World Rally Championship

Rally SwedenWRCSEASON 2023SportRallies1SportWorld Rally ChampionshipRalliesWRCSEASON 2023Rally Sweden01Friday, February 10, 2023 – 9:01pmFriday, February 10, 2023 – 9:01pm

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