Date: 8/9/2023
Day: 2
Flash N°: 4
Special stage:SS4 – Loutraki 2
Distance: 10.37 km
Weather: 26οC, Cloudy
Road conditions: Rough gravel

#69 Kalle ROVANPERÄ / Jonne HALTTUNEN
“Quite OK conditions. The stage is really dry now. There is a lot of loose gravel and the racing line is going to be better for the cars behind”.

#33 Elfyn EVANS / Scott MARTIN
“It’s going to be better for the other cars. It’s a lot drier now, but still there are some big rocks on the road”.

#11 Thierry NEUVILLE / Martijn WYDAEGHE
“It was a good run. I was in the ruts sometimes and I was afraid that we’d roll. It was a bit hard for the soft tyres, they are moving a lot”.

#8 Ott TÄNAK / Martin JÄRVEOJA
They had 3:40 penalty - Late arrival at Time Control SS4 (22 min).

#17 Sebástien OGIER / Vincent LANDAIS
“It’s being a good stage. This was the easiest one, the next two will be very different and difficult. It’s been drier and the grip was not so bad”.

#4 Esapekka LAPPI / Janne FERM
“I didn’t have a good feeling with the soft tyres. I try to be careful in here”.

#18 Takamoto KATSUTA / Aaron JOHNSTON
“This kind of stage I haven’t driven since last year, so I don’t know. It’s slippery”.

#6 Daniel SORDO / Cándido CARRERA
“I made a mistake with the tyres. It’s completely dry now”.

#9 Jourdan SERDERIDIS / Frederic MICLOTTE
“We solved the problem with the engine and it was more enjoyable”.

COMMENT
Sebastien Ogier fights back with the fastest time! The French has now moved second, just 2.4 seconds off Thierry Neuville. The Belgian still leads the Rally, but with narrow gap. Kalle Rovanpera lost time due to the cleaning of the road effect and is now third, 5.8 seconds away from the top position. Ott Tanak had water pump issues and took 3:40 minutes penalty for late arrival at time control. The stage stopped after P1 crews intervals, for safety reasons, due to spectators attending in “NO GO AREAS”.