P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Sébastien Ogier was a surprise overnight leader at Vodafone Rally de Portugal after Ott Tänak’s hopes of a long-awaited victory were ruined by a power steering failure late on Saturday afternoon. With an overnight lead of seven seconds over Ogier, Tanak saw his lead shrink on Saturday’s opening test which was won by Ogier to […]
Sébastien Ogier unexpectedly became the leader of Vodafone Rally de Portugal after Ott Tänak’s power steering failure on Saturday afternoon. Tänak had a 7-second lead over Ogier, which narrowed to 4.4 seconds after Ogier’s win on the first test of Saturday.
Despite Tänak’s strong performance earlier, a power steering issue caused him to drop to third place during the penultimate stage. This turn of events propelled Ogier to the top of the leaderboard with a 27.0-second lead going into the final day of the rally.
Ogier, aiming for his seventh Rally de Portugal win, acknowledged the unfortunate circumstances and expressed hope for Tänak to recover in points. In second place, Kalle Rovanperä held an 8.5-second advantage over Tänak, with Thierry Neuville and Takamoto Katsuta following closely behind.
Championship leader Elfyn Evans faced challenges on Saturday, ending the day in seventh place behind Sami Pajari. Josh McErlean and Oliver Solberg made notable moves up the leaderboard, showcasing strong performances in the rally.
