Britain's Kris Meeke led the opening day of the Tour de Corse after claiming victory in three of the four road speed tests on Friday.
The Citroën driver sailed clear to open up a day one lead of more than ten seconds from current champion Sébastien Ogier, with the M-Sport driver taking victory in the third test to halt Meeke's win-streak before claiming the fourth test.
The pair were well clear of third-placed Thierry Neuville, a further 15.5 seconds off Ogier.
Meeke's C3 seemed far more comfortable on the asphalt under sunny conditions, far more than it did at the season-opening Rallye Monte Carlo's snow-covered roads.
"They were two tough stages this afternoon with a lot of road pollution but I enjoyed them. We’re always wary of Seb as he never gives up but I’m comfortable with my pace," said Meeke.
Ogier believes there's more to come from his Ford Fiesta following gradual set-up changes during the day.
"We’ve improved the car during the day and step-by-step the feeling is getting a bit better. We’re not far off and I have some more ideas for tomorrow."
Craig Breen was fourth in the second Citroën, finishing 1.4 seconds ahead of Dani Sordo, who was 6.4 seconds ahead of Jari-Matti Latvala’s Toyota Yaris.
Hayden Paddon finished seventh after a brief impact with a rock, with Stéphane Lefebvre, WRC2 leader Andreas Mikkelsen and Stephane Sarrazin completing the top ten.
Three drivers suffered nightmare days, with Elfyn Evans more than six minutes down after a hydraulic problem, whilst team-mate Ott Tänak retired from fourth after crashing into a ditch and Juho Hänninen went out after hitting a bridge and damaging his steering.
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