ZAGREB — Sebastien Ogier came out on top on a dramatic final day of the Croatia Rally with the Toyota part-timer jumping from third to first as rivals Thierry Neuville and Elfyn Evans both crashed.
The win, with co-driver Vincent Landais, was the eight-times world champion’s 59th victory of his career and 100th podium appearance.
Hyundai’s Neuville had been leading Evans by just 2.6 seconds but went too fast into a corner and mounted a grass bank before hitting a tree on the second of the day’s four stages, losing 25 seconds.
Evans then hit a bank and spun on the same stage, losing 20 seconds as team mate Ogier suddenly found himself 9.1 seconds clear with two stages to go.
The Frenchman held on to win by 9.7 in a Toyota one-two, with Neuville third.
“It’s been a tough weekend,” said Ogier according to Reuters. “I don´t think I´ve ever had so many moments in one rally but it’s nice to get the win for the team,” added the French rally driver.
Neuville banked 18 points from leading and retained his overall championship advantage, six points clear of Evans after four of 13 rounds.
“We had a great few days but unfortunately we didn’t go so well. At the end we’re taking important points so it’s not so bad,” said the Belgian.
Hyundai’s Ott Tanak was fourth with Toyota’s Takamoto Katsuta fifth and Hyundai’s Andreas Mikkelsen sixth with M-Sport Ford’s Gregoire Munster seventh.
Toyota extended their advantage over Hyundai in the manufacturers’ standings to seven points.
The next round is on gravel in Portugal from May 9-12.
“There were a lot of corners, and when I got the pace note, it was far too late. It’s a shame because everything was going so well” lamented Belgium’s Neuville who posted the quickest time in nine of the rally’s stages and retains the championship lead by six points from Evans.
“We had wanted to push hard in the (closing) power stage but without the rear wing it’s undriveable,” he added according to AFP.
Ogier tied up his first win of the 2024 season – his 59th in all – in which he is only competing part-time by 9.7sec from Evans, with Neuville a further 36sec away in third.
Ogier said 100 was “a nice number so happy with that for sure”.
“We never gave up and kept the pressure on. I’ve never had so many moments in one rally. It’s good to get the win for the team.
“Who would have thought (100 podium finishes) 15 years ago? Nice to see that we still have some speed.”
Hyundai’s world championship leader Neuville edged out Toyota’s Evans in a thrilling fight for the lead as the penultimate stage of the Croatia Rally ended with the top three drivers separated by 11.6 seconds.
The Belgian finished 4.9 seconds ahead of Evans to take a provisional 18 points in the championship battle, while the Welshman earned 15 points after an eight-stage battle where the gap between the two never exceeded five seconds.
Eight-time world champion and part-time Toyota driver Ogier completed the top three 11.6 seconds off the top spot, with the Frenchman earning 13 points going into the Zagreb-based rally’s final round
“It’s not a big lead, but we had a great day. Despite a not-perfect tyre choice this afternoon we were capable of defending our lead,” said Neuville.
“We need to continue attacking and have a good tyre choice. It wasn´t easy when the weather wasn´t very easy to judge.”
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