Solberg leads the rally ahead of Sunday’s four remaining stages by a margin of 59.3 seconds over team-mate Elfyn Evans. On the final stage of Saturday in Monte Carlo, the fastest time was set by Hyundai’s Adrien Fourmaux. Running on soft tyres, Fourmaux recorded Hyundai’s first fastest stage time of the season after Toyota’s dominance.
“The first doughnut was terrible, the second already better. I didn’t want to mess things up after such a great weekend. Tomorrow will definitely be a difficult day again,” Solberg said.
Evans has gained the upper hand over multiple Monte Carlo winner Sebastien Ogier. The Welshman holds second place with a 26-second advantage over Ogier.
“It was really bad. Sometimes it’s hard to judge how slowly you need to drive. There was a lot of water. It certainly won’t be easy tomorrow either,” Evans stated.
“There’s more snow expected tomorrow. With these tyres, hardly anyone is looking forward to tomorrow,” Ogier remarked in turn, referring to Hankook’s tyres.
In fourth place is Hyundai’s Fourmaux, who is already six minutes adrift of the lead. Fifth is Hyundai’s Thierry Neuville ahead of M-Sport Ford’s Jon Armstrong.
Eighth overall in the rally is WRC2 class leader Leo Rossel, who in his Citroën holds Rally1 drivers Grégoire Munster and Takamoto Katsuta behind him.
On Sunday, four more special stages will be contested in Monte Carlo.
The standings of the Monte Carlo Rally after SS13/17:
| POS. | Driver | Car | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Oliver Solberg | Toyota | 3.:6:34.1 |
| 2. | Elfyn Evans | Toyota | +59.3 |
| 3. | Sebastien Ogier | Toyota | +1:25.3 |
| 4. | Adrien Fourmaux | Hyundai | +6:02.9 |
| 5. | Thierry Neuville | Hyundai | +7:23.0 |
| 6. | Jon Armstrong | Ford | +10:03.9 |
| 7. | Leo Rossel | Citroen | +10:57.7 |
| 8. | Gregoire Munster | Ford | +11:29.3 |
| 9. | Takamoto Katsuta | Toyota | +11:36.9 |
| 10. | Roberto Dabra | Skoda | +12:25.6 |
Rally Monte Carlo itinerary (CET):
Wednesday 21 January
14:01 Shakedown: Gap (4.25 km)
Thursday 22 January
16:05 SS1: Toudon / Saint-Antonin (21.90 km)
18:35 SS2: Esclangon / Seyne-les-Alpes (23.80 km)
20:35 SS3: Vaumeilh / Claret 1 (15.06 km)
Friday 23 January
09:04 SS4: Laborel / Chauvac-Laux-Montaux 1 (17.95 km)
10:32 SS5: Saint-Nazaire-le-Désert / La Motte-Chalancon 1 (28.70 km)
11:50 SS6: La-Bâtie-des-Fonts / Aspremont 1 (17.79 km)
13:25 Service (33 min)
15:16 SS7: Laborel / Chauvac-Laux-Montaux 2 (17.95 km)
16:44 SS8: Saint-Nazaire-le-Désert / La Motte-Chalancon 2 (28.70 km)
18:05 SS9: La-Bâtie-des-Fonts / Aspremont 2 (17.79 km)
Saturday 24 January
08:31 SS10: La Bréole / Bellaffaire 1 (29.93 km)
09:55 SS11: Vaumeilh / Claret 2 (15.06 km)
11:15 Service (33 min)
12:31 SS12: La Bréole / Bellaffaire 2 (29.93 km)
14:00 Remote service (20 min)
18:35 SS13: Monaco Circuit (2.69 km)
Sunday 25 January
08:05 SS14: Col de Braus / La Cabanette 1 (12.50 km)
09:35 SS15: La Bollène-Vésubie / Moulinet 1 (23.45 km)
11:09 SS16: Col de Braus / La Cabanette 2 (12.50 km)
13:15 SS17: La Bollène-Vésubie / Moulinet 2 (23.45 km) *Power Stage
