Neuville wins WRC Rally Italia Sardegna, Tänak second in power stage
The WRC Rally Italia Sardegna was won by Thierry Neuville (Hyundai; 3:40:01.4) ahead of stablemate Esapekka Lappi and Toyota's Kalle Rovanperä. Ott Tänak, whose rally ended on Saturday, managed second place after the power stage.
Neuville took the lead after Sebastien Ogier (Toyota) went off the road and packed up his race on SS 14. While Esapekka Lappi had been closest on Ogier's heels until the latter's misfortune, the Finn had to slow down and give his teammate the lead. Nevertheless, Thierry Neuville deserved the win in Sardinia having won six of the rally's special stages.
While coming in second in the rally's second special stage, Ott Tänak (M-Sport) was not quick enough to keep up with the leaders on Friday. On Saturday, the Estonian's Ford suffered too much damage after passing through a water obstacle and he had to quit the rally.
The drivers' standings after WRC Rally Italia Sardegna see Kalle Rovanperä in the lead (118 points), followed by Neuville (93), Tänak (85) and Ogier (70). Toyota leads the teams standings (235 points) ahead of Hyundai (212) and M-Sport (148).
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Editor: Marcus Turovski
