SS5 – Drama unfolds on afternoon’s stages

The open stage of the afternoon saw drama unfold after Hayden Paddon rolled his Hyundai i20 WRC early into the stage, after which it caught fire, setting alight the vegetation around it.

Before the fire broke out fully, DMACK World Rally Team’s Ott Tanak also rolled in the same place, forcing his retirement also. He was left to frantically hose down his Fiesta RS WRC in a bid to stop it from catching alight also. Paddon’s Hyundai was less fortunate, burning to the ground completely.

Prior to the dram unfolding, Hyundai Motorsport’s Dani Sordo set an impressive pace, completing the stage 9.6s ahead of Volkswagen Motorsport’s Sebastien Ogier.

Other drivers struggled to match the pace though, with those who made it through saying that the stage was incredibly rough and incredibly hard on the cars.

Due to the fire, organisers opted for the stage to be neutralised, so no competitive times were posted.