Date: 9/9/2023
Day: 3
Flash N°: 8
Special stage: SS7 – Pavliani 1
Distance: 24.25 km
Weather: 13^οC, Sunny
Road conditions: Dump gravel and mud in places

#69 Kalle ROVANPERÄ / Jonne HALTTUNEN
“You never know what to expect. The conditions are tricky, there is a lot of mud in places. It seems we start the day well.”

#33 Elfyn EVANS / Scott MARTIN
“Not fully surprised with the time. I struggle a little bit with the balance of the car. But me made no mistakes.”

#11 Thierry NEUVILLE / Martijn WYDAEGHE
“I had a good stage. I couldn’t more. Maybe we need to do something to find more grip.”

#8 Ott TÄNAK / Martin JÄRVEOJA
“The stage is not so bad, it’s quite ok. I am running with low power and boost. It’s like the engine is in safe mode.”

#17 Sebástien OGIER / Vincent LANDAIS
“Difficult stage. The mud in the middle was quite challenging. We had a moment after the 10th km, the car aquaplaned in the mud and we almost hit some rocks. But we are here.”

#4 Esapekka LAPPI / Janne FERM
“We have no handbrake. It worked for some kilometers, but not after that. It’s so narrow and twisty, that you can push without it.”.

#18 Takamoto KATSUTA / Aaron JOHNSTON
“We spun in a very narrow place and we lost a lot of time trying to turn around.”

#6 Daniel SORDO / Cándido CARRERA
“Very slippery at the end. I have understeer in some corners. It’s difficult to have the perfect car in this conditions”.

#9 Jourdan SERDERIDIS / Frederic MICLOTTE
“Compared to the video we get yesterday the stage is in better condition. Not so bad. Some parts are muddy, but it will dry fast.”

COMMENTS
Kalle Rovanpera won the first stage of the day with an impressive time. Sebastien Ogier was the only driver close to the Finnish driver and 11,9 seconds faster than Thierry Neuville. The Frenchman is the new overall leader of the Rally, 7,8 seconds ahead of Neuville. Rovanpera is still 3rd but only 21,4 seconds behind Ogier.