Acropolis Rally 2024, SS12: Neuville extends lead and moves closer to victory | FP

The Acropolis Rally continues to bring about upheavals at the top of the general classification, with the six events scheduled today in Greece having seen three different drivers in the lead, all of them locals Hyundai. From Ott Tänak to Dani Sordo to the world championship leader Thierry Neuvillewhich barring any further twists is now close to its second win of the season, with the Korean manufacturer also aiming for a potential one-two by fending off the return of Sebastien Ogier, author of three wins in today’s special stages.

SS7-SS9: Twists and turns to the detriment of the leaders

Acropolis Rally which, judging at least from the beginning of this day (and not only), has turned out to be a sporting curse for the leaders of the classification: already during the first stage, the seventh overall of this edition, October Tanak had to deal with a problem with two tyres, an episode that made him lose the lead in the standings in favour of the other Hyundai Dani Deafslipping out of the top three behind Neuville and Ogier. The Korean duo maintained their top positions even at the end of SS8 despite the comeback of Ogier, winner of the penultimate test of the morning. However, in the third special of the day, Sordo also lost the lead due to a puncture. Yet another dramatic turn of events that opened the doors to first place for Neuville, with the Spaniard still remaining in second place (35 seconds behind the Belgian) after Ogier’s second win. A rally to forget for Ford, with Gregoire Munster forced to retire after going off the road a day after that of his teammate Adrien Fourmaux.

SS10-SS12: Neuville extends lead

The afternoon on Greek soil began once again with Hyundai in the spotlight, but in this case with Ott Tänak. After the problems he had in the morning, the Estonian driver returned to the top of the SS10 standings ahead of Ogier and Neuville, in a very tight classification among the drivers who finished in the top three positions. This allowed the world championship leader to maintain an advantage of around 40 seconds over Sordo, with Ogier in turn engaged in a difficult comeback. The top-3 in the general standings remained unchanged also in SS11 despite Ogier’s best time, in an Acropolis Rally that was once again complex for Elfyn Evans. The Welshman, who had suffered technical problems on Friday, overturned on a hairpin bend, fortunately without suffering any consequences for himself, his test driver or the spectators nearby. An accident was also narrowly avoided at the same point shortly afterwards by Tänak, who however managed to maintain control of the car and continue regularly. Saturday finally concluded with the evening EKO SSS show stage, which ended with the best time by Neuville. A success that allows the Belgian to establish a gap of almost 55 seconds on Sordo and over a minute on Ogier, all while waiting for the last three stages of the Acropolis Rally scheduled for tomorrow.

Acropolis Rally, standings after SS12 (Top-10)