The Hyundai star, who is still in the thick of the world title fight, grabbed the rally lead on the opening stage of the afternoon loop and stretched his advantage even further on the following test.
But his run came to a sudden end on the final stage of the day.
According to Tänak, one cylinder in his Hyundai’s engine failed near the beginning of the stage. Soon after, another one went – and that was the end of his day.
The Estonian was forced to pull over on a straight and retire, a huge setback in his push for the championship.
Soon after, a dramatic photo of Tänak sitting on the grass with his head down in disappointment began circulating on social media.
“This is difficult to digest,” Tänak admitted.
“Everything was on track for a strong result, and the car was running well for most of the day. There was no indication that something was wrong, and we tried to carry on when the first signs appeared, but in the end it was terminal.”
If the embed above is not visible, you can view the photo here.
Tänak had started the rally from fourth in the championship, 18 points adrift of leader Elfyn Evans. He will still have the chance to score on Super Sunday, but the gap to the front is now likely to widen significantly.
In the worst-case scenario, the engine failure could even mark the end of his title bid.
“It is a shame to end the day like this, especially when the championship is very close. But as always, we’ll do everything we can to salvage a good result on Sunday,” Tänak said.
For Hyundai, Friday ended with very mixed emotions. Adrien Fourmaux and Thierry Neuville finished the day in a one-two formation, but Tänak’s painful retirement cast a long shadow.
“We’re very disappointed for Ott. He was controlling this rally and had built a solid margin after five stages. Unfortunately, an engine failure brought his day to an early end,” admitted Hyundai technical director François-Xavier Demaison.
“He will be back with a different engine and a clear mission to score points on Sunday.”
Rally Chile continues on Saturday with six special stages.
