Thierry Neuville (Hyundai) won the Rally of Greece this weekend for the second time in his career. Despite struggling at the start of the race, the Belgian driver took advantage of his opponents’ mechanical problems to catch up with them one by one and win at the end of a chaotic rally, ahead of his teammates Dani Sordo and Ott Tanak. In addition to his victory, Neuville achieved a golden opportunity in the world championship after the retirements of Elfyn Evans and Sébastien Ogier.
Friday, Sebastien Ogier (Toyota) dominated the start of the race, quickly taking the lead of the rally with a comfortable lead over the other drivers. Victim of engine problems during the morning, Thierry Neuville did not really have a say in the matter.
But at the end of the day, the first twists and turns of the rally took place. Adrien Fourmaux (Ford) damaged a suspension in the fourth stage and was forced to retire. In the next two stages, Sébastien Ogier had turbo problems and lost more than two minutes. Against all expectations, the day ended with three Hyundai drivers in the top three places: There, Tanak leader, in front Dani Deaf and Thierry Neuville.
On Saturday, the three Hyundais were able to comfortably manage their lead over their competitors. But Tanak and Sordo suffered a puncture early in the day. The two drivers limited the damage but saw Neuville pass them and take the lead of the rally.
This Sunday, there was a dramatic turn of events in the Power Stage. Ogier, who had moved up to second place, rolled over and lost a lot in a few fractions of a second. Thierry Neuville avoided the last pitfalls of the rally to take his second victory of the season ahead of Dani Sordo and Ott Tanak.
Grégoire Munster (Ford), who was well on his way to finishing in the top 5 of the rally, lost everything on Saturday morning. The Belgian lost the rear of his vehicle in the ninth special stage, before finishing his race on the side of the road and retiring.
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