The fourth stage of the first full day of competition brought success for Volkswagen Motorsport’s Sebastien Ogier, who claimed a stage win. However, many drivers suffered punctures and damage due to the increasingly rough, rutted and exposed conditions.
First on the road, Ogier had less to deal with in the way of exposed or disturbed rocks. Road position still took its toll though, leaving the Frenchman in 6th position overall, some 23.1s off teammate, Latvala’s, pace.
Jari-Matti Latvala was the second fastest over the aggressive stage and was shocked by how rough the conditions were. Despite the challenge in front of him, he managed to retain his lead of the event, completing with a healthy 7.4s overall lead.
Third fastest over the rutted and precarious stage was Ott Tanak. His Fiesta RS WRC took a battering, despite his best efforts to nurse the deteriorating tyres over the stage - he finished in 5th overall. Kris Meeke managed to retain his 2nd position, despite being fourth fastest over the stage.
In WRC2, Yazeed Al Rajhi was the quickest over the stage, despite driving with caution so as to avoid damage. Nasser Al Attiyah, however, finished the stage with a puncture. Luckily it was in the last 4kn of the stage, so he didn’t lose too much time. Impressively, he also managed to retain his lead in WRC2 by some 10.3s.
Third quickest WRC2 driver over the stage was Jari Ketomaa, who cheekily suggested the stage was “like a table” because he didn’t want to be one to complain!
Eric Camili failed to finish the stage due to a suspected spin. Other casualties included Abdulaziz Al-Kuwari who had a puncture, along with Nicolas Fuchs, Martin Prokop and Lorenzo Bertelli who suffered the same fate. All four drivers completed, but only after losing time.