![]() Hyundai’s Thierry Neuville was hindered by a slow puncture in the day’s opening stage, but passed Evans late in the morning to make it two i20 N Rally1 cars in the overall top three. It’s not finished yet, so we need to keep it going tomorrow.” On the stages which were bad, we had the advantage to slow down, but when it was needed, we were able to speed up. “It’s been an extremely good day,” Tanak admitted. Victory on Sunday would ensure the pair retain a 100-percent victory record in Chile, a rally which featured on the WRC calendar just once previously, back in 2019. Tire preservation remained a key factor on the repeated afternoon loop but, with the hard work done, Tanak and co-driver Martin Jarveoja were able to manage their lead over Suninen’s Hyundai i20N Rally1. Tanak, whose hard choice boasted a longer lifespan, took full advantage and extended his lead to 47.8s by service. With their rubber worn down by the time they’d reached the final stage before the midday service halt, Suninen and Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 drivers Evans and Rovanpera all leaked chunks of time. It was something of a reversal of his all-softs Friday strategy, but once again it proved mighty effective. And while Tanak’s rivals leaned towards Pirelli’s soft compound rubber for the morning loop, the Estonian’s decision to take four hard tires with him made a world of difference. Saturday’s stages were longer, twistier and much more abrasive than Friday’s six-stage affair. The M-Sport Ford Puma Rally1 driver (above) began the penultimate leg – the longest of the South American all-gravel event – with a small 4.2s advantage over Hyundai Motorsport’s Teemu Suninen, but ended the day’s six special stages a whopping 58.3s clear after a leg which delivered trouble for FIA World Rally Championship title contenders Kalle Rovanpera and Elfyn Evans. Ott Tanak closed in on back-to-back WRC Rally Chile victories after dominating Saturday’s stages to build a commanding lead heading into Sunday’s short final leg.
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