Evans clocked the second fastest time on the 9.48-kilometer sprint stage, trailing his teammate Sebastien Ogier by only 0.3 seconds. Evans took the rally lead with a 1.6-second margin over Hyundai’s Thierry Neuville, who had led the rally from the start.
“Everything is fine,” Evans commented amidst his adrenaline rush.
“To be honest really disappointed because (the puncture is) something that could’ve been avoided. We were struggling a bit to find motivation in the road section. I know I can go faster but I don’t trust. If I don’t trust I will make a mistake so have to take it slow,” Neuville pondered.
Ogier continues in third place in the rally. He is 17.6 seconds behind Evans. This stage marked Ogier’s first fastest time in this year’s Croatia Rally.
“Enjoyable, some more grip, consistent conditions,” Ogier remarked.
In fourth place is Hyundai’s Ott Tänak. The Estonian has improved his pace in the afternoon, but he is still 41.4 seconds behind the leader. M-Sport Ford’s Adrien Fourmaux is in fifth place, 13.1 seconds behind Tänak.
In sixth place is Toyota’s Takamoto Katsuta, ahead of Hyundai’s Andreas Mikkelsen.
In the WRC2 class, Nikolay Gryazin, currently racing under the Bulgarian flag, continues to lead. Citroën holds a double lead in the class, with Yohan Rossel, who is 18.2 seconds behind Gryazin. Gus Greensmith is in third place, only 8.1 seconds behind Rossel. Sami Pajari is the top Finnish driver in the class, in fourth place and twelfth overall.
One more special stage will be run in Croatia on Friday. The race concludes on Sunday.
Watch the video below for a recap of Friday morning’s events at the Croatia Rally. The competition’s standings and itinerary are below the video.
Standings at the Croatia Rally after SS7/20:
| POS | Driver | Car | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Elfyn Evans | Toyota | 52:14.5 |
| 2. | Thierry Neuville | Hyundai | +1.6 |
| 3. | Sebastien Ogier | Toyota | +17.6 |
| 4. | Ott Tänak | Hyundai | +41.4 |
| 5. | Adrien Fourmaux | Ford | +54.5 |
| 6. | Takamoto Katsuta | Toyota | +1:38.3 |
| 7. | Andreas Mikkelsen | Hyundai | +2:12.9 |
| 8. | Gregoire Munster | Ford | +2:45.1 |
| 9. | Nikolai Grjazin | Citroen | +3:21.1 |
| 10. | Yohan Rossel | Citroen | +3:39.3 |
| 11. | Gus Greensmith | Skoda | +3.47,4 |
| 12. | Sami Pajari | Toyota | +4:11.8 |
Croatia Rally itinerary (CET):
Thursday, April 18 09:01 Shakedown: Okić (3.65 km) Friday, April 19 08:28 SS1: Krašić - Sošice 1 (23.63 km) 09:41 SS2: Jaškovo - Mali Modruš Potok 1 (9.48 km) 10:39 SS3: Ravna Gora - Skrad 1 (10.13 km) 11:47 SS4: Platak 1 (16.63 km) 14:02 Tyre fitting zone (15 min) 14:45 SS5: Platak 2 (16.63 km) 15:58 SS6: Ravna Gora - Skrad 2 (10.13 km) 17:16 SS7: Jaškovo - Mali Modruš Potok 2 (9.48 km) 18:09 SS8: Krašić - Sošice 2 (23.63 km) Saturday, April 20 07:31 SS9: Smerovišće - Grdanjci 1 (15.72 km) 08:24 SS10: Stojdraga - Gornja Vas 1 (20.77 km) 10:05 SS11: Vinski Vrh - Duga Resa 1 (8.78 km) 11:03 SS12: Pećurkovo Brdo - Mrežnički Novaki 1 (9.11 km) 13:03 Service (40 min) 14:31 SS13: Smerovišće - Grdanjci 2 (15.72 km) 15:24 SS14: Stojdraga - Gornja Vas 2 (20.77 km) 17:05 SS15: Vinski Vrh - Duga Resa 2 (8.78 km) 18:03 SS16: Pećurkovo Brdo - Mrežnički Novaki 2 (9.11 km) Sunday, April 21 07:08 SS17: Trakošćan - Vrbno 1 (13.15 km) 08:35 SS18: Zagorska Sela - Kumrovec 1 (14.24 km) 10:23 SS19: Trakošćan - Vrbno 2 (13.15 km) 13:15 SS20: Zagorska Sela - Kumrovec 2 (14.24 km) *Power Stage
