Friday morning - Meeke to the fore

The first full loop of stages in this year’s Vodafone Rally de Portugal saw Citroen’s Kris Meeke emerge as the initial leader, winning the first two of the day’s stages and narrowly missing his hat-trick on the third, by just 0.2 seconds.

The first two stages of the morning were damp but the fog, which befell the service park at Matosinhos, was absent from the stages themselves. The crews complained of slippery conditions initially but at the same time, they also said that there was grip available in places.

Several picked up problems along the way – Jari-Matti Latvala said he could not find the feeling in the car and knew what he could do but not until he returned to the service area. Winner of the previous round, Hayden Paddon in the Hyundai, also felt there was something wrong with his car but could not pin-point the problem, saying it didn't feel as strong in the slow corners.

Mads Ostberg, in the Ford, complained of problems with his downshift while Andreas Mikkelsen admitted he was possibly approaching the opening loop too cautiously.

However, there were no such comments from Meeke. He capitalised on his road position, of 13th, by winning the first two stages of the day. He also looked to be on course for his third on the final test of the morning but was pipped by Latvala, who went through just 0.2 seconds faster, to claim the win.

Dani Sordo was not far away, the Spaniard enjoying the third of the morning’s stages in particular while Ott Tanak was using the new DMACK tier to good effect, notably on the shorter stages.

By the end of the first loop of stages, Meeke leads by 11.5 seconds from Ogier, who in turn is just 3.1 seconds ahead of Sordo at the mid-point of the first day.