Sebastien Ogier and Vincent Landais lead Rally Islas Canarias by 8.6 seconds, heading a Toyota Gazoo Racing one-two-three-four-five ahead of the super special stage that closes out the day’s action.
The nine-time WRC Champion stormed into the lead from the first test, going on to win four of the day’s six stages.
Oliver Solberg and Elliot Edmondson spent the shortened morning loop (stage three was cancelled due to spectators’ behaviour) in fourth position. Following the midday service, he took the fastest time on stage five to bounce into second on the overall leaderboard, demoting teammates Sami Pajari and Marko Salminen and Elfyn Evans and Scott Martin down to third and fourth respectively.
Evans put himself back on to the provisional podium on the final long stage in a tight Toyota fight with 1.3 seconds separating the Welshman and Finn.
The championship leaders, Takamoto Katsuta and Aaron Johnston are currently in fifth place. After stage seven, he reported: “For sure it is better than the last two stages. It is easier to drive. I am a bit lost. I need to find something for tomorrow.”
Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT were well off the pace. Dani Sordo and Candido Carrera, enjoying their first outing of the season, head the Korean charge in sixth, while Adrien Fourmaux/Alex Coria, and Thierry Neuville/Martijn Wydaeghe suffered inconsistent front-end grip and languish in seventh and eighth respectively.
“It has been challenging day so far. We are struggling to find the speed. In here {SS7} I started to enjoy it a bit. The balance was better. It is not perfect yet but we keep on working. I need a lot of trust in the front of the car as otherwise I can’t go fast,” the Belgian reported.
Josh McErlean and Eoin Treacy lead the M-Sport Ford challenge in ninth with Jon Armstrong and Shayne Byrne in 10th, suffering similar handling problems to their French and Belgian rivals. The rookie Ford driver had a lucky escape in stage four when his Puma broke traction and slithered down an escape road. He later hit a barrier in an otherwise uneventful day.
In WRC2, Yohan Rossel won all five stages in his Lancia Ypsilon, followed by his brother Leo in his Citroen C3 who was running second. Across the final two stages, Spaniard Alejandro Cachon passed Rossel (L) for second place.
The 1.9km super special stage takes place later this evening.
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