The final stage of the day was won by Volkswagen Motorsport driver, Sebastien Ogier, securing his overall lead for a second day where he drove another clean stage, furthering his reputation for being able to prolong the life of tyres.
Mikkio Hirvonen was second to finish the stage with a time of 15:25.1s. The Citroen Total Abu Dhabi World rally Team driver was happy with his pace, but was concerned he may have been too hard on his tyres, hinting that it might make tomorrow’s two 52km stages difficult to complete.
Jari-Matti Latvala took third within the stage, though he ended up losing time to Ogier despite his best efforts. Crossing the finish with a slightly deflated front tyre, he was happy with the result and happy with the new car’s performance on the day.
Mads Ostberg continued the charge in his Qatar M-Sport World Rally Team Fiesta RS WRC, finishing the stage in fourth position which put him in 12th overall.
Car 2, Hirvonen/Lehtinen
“I tried to push just a little bit, but it’s so rough and so hot. The tyres are really at the limit. Okay, it’s quite a good stage. Tomorrow is a long day and I don’t have new tyres, I might not make the whole loop, but we’ll see.”
Car 4, Ostberg/Andersson
“I told you the tyres would be fine! We took it steady on the last one. Going first on the road there is so much dust that I wear the tyres less than the cars behind me. It wasn’t so bad on this one, I was very careful, I didn’t want a puncture. I just got through this one slowly and we’ll start again tomorrow.”
Car 5, Novikov/Minor
“Everything is going okay, there were some problems with the suspension but it didn’t get worse. Maybe a damper or some other problem, but it’s okay, we’re finished today.”
Car 6, Al-Attyah/Bernacchini
“I’m really happy today, we drove well without and problem. We have fifth position. I’m happy to finish the day without any trouble at all.”
Car 7, Latvala/Anttila
“The front left is soft. Some of the stones have done it. We lost some time with that. It’s been a good day, I’ve been really enjoying it.”
Car 8, Ogier/Ingrassia
“It’s a good time! This time I didn’t push because of the tyre. Usually I save a bit more of the tyre but not today. Tomorrow is a long one, two times on 50km stages is going to be tough. This afternoon was a bit better.”
Car 9, Mikkelsen/Markkula
“Everything was okay. It’s not easy, the tyres are so worn now. We tried to conserve them as much as we can and I think we did that quite well.”
Car 10, Al Qassimi/Martin
“It was quite rough, but not as rough as the first one. We were just trying to get back to the right rhythm. There’s a lot we have to do, but again, we have to finish.”
Car 12, Kosciuszko/Szczepaniak
“The car stopped in the last stage and had no electricity, it was impossible to start. The only comment is to look at my tyres. At least we didn’t get a puncture.”
Car 15, Kuipers/Buysmans
“It went very well, okay it’s rough, there are big stones on the road. We didn’t take any risks, we’re in a good position now. We’re just looking forward to tomorrow now.”
Car 21, Prokop/Ernst
“Yeah, I only have front-wheel-drive. It wasn’t very good, a lot of wheel-spin. We put on fresh tyres and they’re destroyed. I hope we can get back and do tomorrow.”
Car 31, Lappi/Ferm
“A very good day, just a shame the fastest guy retired. We had a perfect day, no tyre problems, no punctures. Just perfect.”
Car 32, Wiegand/Christian
“Basically a good day, the first two stages weren’t too go for us, but then it got better and the final stage was good to drive.”
Car 41, Fuchs/Mussano
“It was a very long day, a lot of stones in the road, very rough on the tyres. It’s a long day tomorrow, it think it’s good. Tomorrow we’ll go flat out.”
Car 48, Al-Kuwari/Duffy
“All is okay, we were very cautious. It’s a very rough stage, you can look at the front tyres, that’s why we were cautious. Very tough day and I’m happy because physically we are okay, you can ask anyone, these stages are very tough.”
Car 51, Chardonnet/De La Haye
“I think like a lot of Citroen top drivers it was very difficult. We made a mistake, but this afternoon we just looked to finish. Yesterday was okay, but today was a little bit more difficult. The car did a lot of over-steering, it was difficult to not go too fast and risk the position.”
Car 59, Bouffier/Panseri
“I’m very happy about the result, it’s amazing to drive here this week. To continue like this would be amazing, I’m leading. But we still have 145k to, so we will have to see and we will have to be careful.”
Car 79, Barrable/Loudon
“We ran wide on a left-hander and got a puncture so we had to stop and change it. We damaged the rear of the car (under-tray loose) but we didn’t stop, we didn’t know how bad it was. We’ll get back tonight, have a good night’s sleep and see what we can do tomorrow.”
Car 83, Magalhães/Magalhães
“It was a fantastic day for us, we had to push a lot. We lost ten minutes yesterday. We got eight minutes back. We’ll push hard and try to win the Portuguese tomorrow.”
Car 88, Lehessaari/Harikainen
“It’s been really hard, difficult. We had lots of problems but we managed it. Lots of technical problems, no accidents.”
Car 102, Tidemand/Floene
“It’s a perfect start, we push all the time so it’s good to stand here now. You don’t get anything for free, so we just do good preparation and stay focused.”
Car 2, Hirvonen/Lehtinen“I tried to push just a little bit, but it’s so rough and so hot. The tyres are really at the limit. Okay, it’s quite a good stage. Tomorrow is a long day and I don’t have new tyres, I might not make the whole loop, but we’ll see.”
Car 4, Ostberg/Andersson“I told you the tyres would be fine! We took it steady on the last one. Going first on the road there is so much dust that I wear the tyres less than the cars behind me. It wasn’t so bad on this one, I was very careful, I didn’t want a puncture. I just got through this one slowly and we’ll start again tomorrow.”
Car 5, Novikov/Minor“Everything is going okay, there were some problems with the suspension but it didn’t get worse. Maybe a damper or some other problem, but it’s okay, we’re finished today.”
Car 6, Al-Attyah/Bernacchini“I’m really happy today, we drove well without and problem. We have fifth position. I’m happy to finish the day without any trouble at all.”
Car 7, Latvala/Anttila“The front left is soft. Some of the stones have done it. We lost some time with that. It’s been a good day, I’ve been really enjoying it.”
Car 8, Ogier/Ingrassia“It’s a good time! This time I didn’t push because of the tyre. Usually I save a bit more of the tyre but not today. Tomorrow is a long one, two times on 50km stages is going to be tough. This afternoon was a bit better.”
Car 9, Mikkelsen/Markkula“Everything was okay. It’s not easy, the tyres are so worn now. We tried to conserve them as much as we can and I think we did that quite well.”
Car 10, Al Qassimi/Martin“It was quite rough, but not as rough as the first one. We were just trying to get back to the right rhythm. There’s a lot we have to do, but again, we have to finish.”
Car 12, Kosciuszko/Szczepaniak“The car stopped in the last stage and had no electricity, it was impossible to start. The only comment is to look at my tyres. At least we didn’t get a puncture.”
Car 15, Kuipers/Buysmans“It went very well, okay it’s rough, there are big stones on the road. We didn’t take any risks, we’re in a good position now. We’re just looking forward to tomorrow now.”
Car 21, Prokop/Ernst“Yeah, I only have front-wheel-drive. It wasn’t very good, a lot of wheel-spin. We put on fresh tyres and they’re destroyed. I hope we can get back and do tomorrow.”
Car 31, Lappi/Ferm“A very good day, just a shame the fastest guy retired. We had a perfect day, no tyre problems, no punctures. Just perfect.”
Car 32, Wiegand/Christian“Basically a good day, the first two stages weren’t too go for us, but then it got better and the final stage was good to drive.”
Car 41, Fuchs/Mussano“It was a very long day, a lot of stones in the road, very rough on the tyres. It’s a long day tomorrow, it think it’s good. Tomorrow we’ll go flat out.”
Car 48, Al-Kuwari/Duffy“All is okay, we were very cautious. It’s a very rough stage, you can look at the front tyres, that’s why we were cautious. Very tough day and I’m happy because physically we are okay, you can ask anyone, these stages are very tough.”
Car 51, Chardonnet/De La Haye“I think like a lot of Citroen top drivers it was very difficult. We made a mistake, but this afternoon we just looked to finish. Yesterday was okay, but today was a little bit more difficult. The car did a lot of over-steering, it was difficult to not go too fast and risk the position.”
Car 59, Bouffier/Panseri“I’m very happy about the result, it’s amazing to drive here this week. To continue like this would be amazing, I’m leading. But we still have 145k to, so we will have to see and we will have to be careful.”
Car 79, Barrable/Loudon“We ran wide on a left-hander and got a puncture so we had to stop and change it. We damaged the rear of the car (under-tray loose) but we didn’t stop, we didn’t know how bad it was. We’ll get back tonight, have a good night’s sleep and see what we can do tomorrow.”
Car 83, Magalhães/Magalhães“It was a fantastic day for us, we had to push a lot. We lost ten minutes yesterday. We got eight minutes back. We’ll push hard and try to win the Portuguese tomorrow.”
Car 88, Lehessaari/Harikainen“It’s been really hard, difficult. We had lots of problems but we managed it. Lots of technical problems, no accidents.”
Car 102, Tidemand/Floene“It’s a perfect start, we push all the time so it’s good to stand here now. You don’t get anything for free, so we just do good preparation and stay focused.”