Ogier suffered a puncture, losing nearly two minutes to the fastest time. His position in the overall standings also took a hit, as the French star had been leading the rally before the puncture.
The eight-time world champion has been avoiding post-stage interviews in Chile after receiving a hefty suspended fine for criticising organisers in the previous event in Greece. He continued this approach after his tyre troubles.
“Unfortunate,” Ogier summarised briefly.
Toyota’s Finnish star Kalle Rovanperä set the fastest time on the third stage, despite being far from satisfied. Rovanperä beat his teammate Elfyn Evans by just one-tenth of a second on the 23.32-kilometre San Rosendo stage. In the overall standings, Evans took the lead after Ogier’s troubles, with a 2.2-second gap over Rovanperä.
“Really bad to be honest, I don’t feel comfortable at all on these roads. I was expecting it a bit, but when it is dry like this it does not fit my usual driving style. I am fighting the car and my driving a lot,” Rovanperä explained.
“It’s quite tricky to manage, some places are clean, but the loose is coming in,” Evans added.
Toyota still holds the top three spots in the rally, with Sami Pajari in third place. The Finn native is 6.6 seconds off the lead.
“Quite tricky, quite similar to SS2, maybe I was too careful in some places and maybe I should have been more committed or accurate with the throttle in some places,” Pajari summarised.
In fourth place is Luxembourg’s Gregoire Munster, who has impressed with his pace. Munster is only 6.9 seconds behind the leader. In sixth place is Munster’s Ford teammate Adrien Fourmaux, ahead of championship leader Thierry Neuville. The Belgian has already dropped 13.8 seconds, acting as the road sweeper.
“It will be a long weekend for us that’s for sure, I am fighting. There’s not much more we can do,” Neuville said.
Hyundai’s Esapekka Lappi’s role is to secure team points for the Korean manufacturer. The Finn, who is eighth in the rally, expressed frustration with his performance.
“All is well. It was pretty horrible. It’s hard to keep the car on the road. I’d like to be faster, but it’s impossible,” Lappi lamented.
Like Ogier, Latvia’s Martins Sesks also ran into trouble with his Ford. Sesks went wide in a corner and damaged two tyres. Since he had only one spare tyre, Sesks had to drive extremely cautiously through the stage, losing a massive five minutes to the leaders.
Three more stages remain in Rally Chile on Friday after the service break. The competition concludes on Sunday.
Rally Chile standings after SS3/16:
| POS | Driver | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Elfyn Evans | Toyota | 29:14.6 |
| 2. | Kalle Rovanperä | Toyota | +2.2 |
| 3. | Sami Pajari | Toyota | +6.6 |
| 4. | Gregoire Munster | Ford | +6.9 |
| 5. | Ott Tänak | Hyundai | +7.3 |
| 6. | Adrien Fourmaux | Ford | +7.4 |
| 7. | Thierry Neuville | Hyundai | +13.8 |
| 8. | Esapekka Lappi | Hyundai | +18.3 |
| 9. | Oliver Solberg | Skoda | +1:22.2 |
| 10. | Yohan Rossel | Citroen | +1:25.2 |
Rally Chile itinerary (CET):
Thursday, 26 Sept: 13:31 Shakedown: Conuco (6.79 km) Friday, 27 Sept: 13:35 SS1: Pulperia 1 (19.72 km) 14:30 SS2: Rere 1 (13.34 km) 15:21 SS3: San Rosendo 1 (23.32 km) 18:11 Service (30 min) 19:46 SS4: Pulperia 2 (19.72 km) 20:41 SS5: Rere 2 (13.34 km) 21:32 SS6: San Rosendo 2 (23.32 km) Saturday, 28 Sept: 14:07 SS7: Pelun 1 (15.65 km) 15:01 SS8: Lota 1 (25.64 km) 16:05 SS9: Maria las Cruces 1 (28.31 km) 18:37 Service (30 min) 20:07 SS10: Pelun 2 (15.65 km) 21:01 SS11: Lota 2 (25.64 km) 22:05 SS12: Maria las Cruces 2 (28.31 km) Sunday, 29 Sept: 13:23 SS13: Laraquete 1 (18.62 km) 14:35 SS14: Bio Bio 1 (8.78 km) 15:35 SS15: Laraquete 2 (18.62 km) 18:15 SS16: Bio Bio 2 (8.78 km) Power Stage
