P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Abiteboul: Neuville “in too much of a rush” to catch WRC Japan leader Evans
Thierry Neuville was closing in on Elfyn Evans and seemed poised to challenge for victory before his rally unraveled during stage six. He hit a compression in the road, resulting in a heavy impact with trees and ending his hopes of denying Toyota a home soil victory for the second year in a row. Hyundai had a difficult day overall, losing Dani Sordo to a crash on stage two and Esapekka Lappi struggling with confidence on the challenging asphalt stages. Team principal Cyril Abiteboul acknowledged that Neuville’s impatience may have led to the mistake and expressed the team’s desire to reflect and find ways to limit such errors in the future. Despite the setback, Toyota is now in control of the rally, with Evans leading teammate Sébastien Ogier.
