One particular stage proved brutally difficult for many, cutting through the field both in the morning and again in the afternoon. In the morning loop, M-Sport Ford drivers Grégoire Munster, Josh McErlean and Martins Sesks were all forced to retire on the new stage. In the afternoon, it claimed reigning champion Thierry Neuville of Hyundai.
All five Toyota crews, however, made it to the evening service. The only real drama was for Takamoto Katsuta, who rolled his car on the same tricky stage, but even he managed to continue.
At the end of the day, Toyota’s Sébastien Ogier leads the rally ahead of Hyundai drivers Adrien Fourmaux and Ott Tänak. Behind them, four more Toyotas follow: Sami Pajari in fourth, Kalle Rovanperä fifth, Elfyn Evans sixth and Katsuta seventh.
“We have to be really pleased to be leading. Of course, there’s still a long way to go, and we’ll see what happens. But the situation looks good,” Toyota team principal Latvala told RallyJournal.com.
Both Pajari and Rovanperä are within striking distance of the lead – Pajari sits 16.8 seconds behind Ogier and Rovanperä trails by 22.8 seconds. For Rovanperä in particular, it was an important defensive effort on Friday. Despite his early road position, he managed to stay in touch with the front.
“Friday is such an important day here – you have to secure a good road position for the next day. Now we’re in a good place: Ogier starts last, and both Kalle and Sami have favourable road positions too. These three cars are very much in the game,” Latvala said with satisfaction.
Rovanperä was especially strong during the afternoon loop, setting one fastest time and even reducing his gap to the front. He said that after midday service, he found better setup adjustments for the car.
Latvala noticed something even more significant happening with his young star.
“I think Kalle broke through a bit of a mental barrier. From that point, he really started to come alive. He drove a good stage and gained confidence from it,” Latvala observed.
Still, the standout of the day was veteran Sébastien Ogier, who is again contesting a partial season in 2024. From his three starts this year, Ogier has already taken two wins and one second place – and now he’s fighting for another victory.
“This morning, you could see he had that killer instinct. You could see in his eyes that he was here to race and wanted to win. He showed today exactly why he’s a multiple world champion. Sure, Tänak had a small issue on the final stage, but Ogier still drove brilliantly,” Latvala praised.
Rally Sardinia continues on Saturday with six more special stages.
