Toyota’s Elfyn Evans made a strong attempt to take the lead during the final stage of Friday, but Tänak managed to hold him off. Tänak retained the top spot by just 0.4 seconds.
Tänak kept his post-stage interview short and positive, continuing the approach he had all day – no negativity. Tänak and Toyota’s Sebastien Ogier have adopted this tactic in protest against the FIA, which has tried to regulate drivers’ comments.
“We’ve had a good day and we need to be really happy with that,” Tänak said.
Tänak, who has won the last two editions of Rally Chile, now has the chance to secure a third consecutive victory. Notably, if he wins, Tänak will celebrate victory with a third different car manufacturer.
However, Tänak’s path to victory is still long, with small gaps separating the drivers and two days of competition remaining. Evans is close behind, and Kalle Rovanperä, who sits third, is not far off either.
Rovanperä is 7.1 seconds behind Tänak. The reigning world champion was not entirely satisfied with his performance on the opening day.
“I guess one of those days when you just don’t get the feeling and the driving of the car right, I just tried to keep out of trouble and end a disappointing day. It’s me, I should be better,” Rovanperä admitted.
Rovanperä went wide on a corner during the first stage of the afternoon. Without that mistake, he might have been leading the rally.
Sami Pajari, competing in a Toyota Rally1 car for the second time, and M-Sport Ford’s Gregoire Munster were the positive surprises of the day. Pajari is impressively in fourth place, with Munster right behind him in fifth. Pajari trails the leader by just 9.3 seconds.
“It has been a really good day, really clean and basically without any mistakes. We were maybe a bit too careful, there are a lot of things to learn, but we kept it clean,” Pajari reflected.
Championship leader Thierry Neuville, who acted as the road sweeper for Friday’s stages, finished the day in sixth, half a minute behind the leader. His teammate Esapekka Lappi is in seventh (+36.1).
M-Sport Ford’s Adrien Fourmaux set the fastest time on the final stage of Friday, but in the overall standings, he is down in eighth. Fourmaux received a one-minute time penalty in the afternoon due to technical issues. Right behind Fourmaux is Toyota’s Ogier, who suffered a puncture in the morning.
Rally Chile continues on Saturday with six special stages. The competition concludes on Sunday.
Rally Chile standings after SS6/16:
| POS | Driver | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Ott Tänak | Hyundai | 58:06.9 |
| 2. | Elfyn Evans | Toyota | +0.4 |
| 3. | Kalle Rovanperä | Toyota | +7.1 |
| 4. | Sami Pajari | Toyota | +9.3 |
| 5. | Gregoire Munster | Ford | +10.7 |
| 6. | Thierry Neuville | Hyundai | +30.3 |
| 7. | Esapekka Lappi | Hyundai | +36.1 |
| 8. | Adrien Fourmaux | Ford | +1:01.0 |
| 9. | Sebastien Ogier | Toyota | +1:24.9 |
| 10. | Nikolay Gryazin | Skoda | +2:14.9 |
| 11. | Oliver Solberg | Skoda | +2:25.1 |
| 12. | Yohan Rossel | Citroen | +2:26.4 |
| 13. | Gus Greensmith | Skoda | +2:28.9 |
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
