Belgian Thierry Neuville is the first leader of the 57th edition of the Vodafone Rally de Portugal. The Hyundai driver was the fastest in the 2.94 kilometres of the Figueira da Foz Super-Special, with a six-tenths advantage over Sébastien Ogier (Toyota).
The best Portuguese were Armindo Araújo/Luís Ramalho (Skoda). A day marked by the first ‘bath’ of crowds, also in Baltar (Shakedown stage) and in Coimbra, where thousands of fans greeted the WRC stars at the departure ceremony. Tomorrow, the teams have two passes through the Mortágua, Lousã, Góis and Arganil sections, totalling 126.90 kilometres run against the clock.
“It’s a difficult weekend ahead of us. It’s hotter than expected and the choice of tyres will be crucial, even more so tomorrow (Friday), an always challenging day in Portugal”, confessed Thierry Neuville, moments after setting the best time in the Super-Special Figueira da Foz, the opening stage of the Vodafone Rally de Portugal.
The Hyundai driver, navigated by Martijn Wydaeghe, was six-tenths of a second faster than the Frenchman Sébastian Ogier (Toyota) in the 2.94 kilometres of the qualifying held in the early evening of this Thursday, with the Atlantic Ocean as a backdrop and a summer temperature. A section in which the teams sought to provide a spectacle for the large crowd, whilst avoiding premature tire wear for tomorrow’s tough stage.
Estonian Ott Tänak followed Thierry Neuville and Sébastien Ogier, with the Hyundai driver highlighting the “importance of getting into the rhythm. Tomorrow, we will try to push as hard as possible and we will see how things go”. In the immediate positions finished Takamoto Katsuta (Toyota), Kalle Rovanperä (Toyota), Adrien Fourmaux (Ford), Dani Sordo (Hyundai), Elfyn Evans (Toyota) and Yohan Rossel (Citroën), first among WRC2.
Among the teams in the Portuguese Rally Championship, Kris Meeke (Hyundai) was the fastest on the Figueira da Foz circuit and 11th overall – 3rd among WRC2. Armindo Araújo (Skoda) was just seven-tenths of a second behind and was the best Portuguese driver. “It’s fantastic. The audience is very enthusiastic. We always do our best to give people a good show. It’s an honour for me to start this party and be at this event.”
Today’s stage
Eight stages, totalling 126.90 kilometres run against the clock, are the challenge for today’s stage (Friday). In Central Portugal, the teams will travel twice through the Mortágua, Lousã, Góis and Arganil sections. Specials that are traditionally very tough and often claim the first victims.
Vodafone Rally de Portugal – Classification after SS1:
- Thierry Neuville (BEL)/Martijn Wydaeghe (BEL) Hyundai i20 N Rally1 2m24,2s
- Sebastien Ogier (FRA)/Vincent Landais (FRA) Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 a 0,6s
- Ott Tänak (EST)/Martin Järveoja (EST) Hyundai i20 N Rally1 a 2,0s
- Takamoto Katsuta (JPN)/Aaron Johnston (IRL) Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 a 2,0s
- Kalle Rovanperä (FIN)/Jonne Halttunen (FIN) Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 a 2,4s
- Adrien Fourmaux (FRA)/Alexandre Coria (FRA) Ford Puma Rally1 a 3,1s
- Dani Sordo (ESP)/Candido Carrera (ESP) Hyundai i20 N Rally1 a 4,1s
- Elfyn Evans (GBR)/Scott Martin (GBR) Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 a 4,3s
- Yohan Rossel (FRA)/Arnaud Dunand (FRA) Citroën C3 (WRC2) a 4,7s
- Pierre-Louis Loubet (FRA)/Loris Pascaud Skoda Fabia RS (WRC2) a 5,2s
…
- Armindo Araújo/Luís Ramalho (Skoda Fabia RS) (Melhor Português) a 6,5s
PROGRAM
Friday, May 10, 2024
- 06:45 Departure from Figueira da Foz
- 08:05 SS2 Mortágua 1 (18.15 km)
- 09:35 SS3 Lousã 1 (12.28 km)
- 10:35 am SS4 Góis 1 (14.30 km)
- 11:35 am SS5 Arganil 1 (18.72 km)
- 12:15 Regroup in Arganil
- 12:45 Departure from regrouping
- 14:05 SS6 Lousã 2 (12.28 km)
- 15:05 SS7 Góis 2 (14.30 km)
- 16:05 SS8 Arganil 2 (18.72 km)
- 17:35 SS9 Mortágua 2 (18.15 km)
- 18:05 Flexi Service in Matosinhos (Exponor)
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