Acropolis Rally SS6: Tänak leads Hyundai trio | FP

The first day of the 2024 Acropolis Rally was marked by retirements and numerous changes at the top of the general classification, with October Tanak momentarily leading the group just ahead of the other two Hyundais of Dani Sordo and Thierry Neuville, who had not started under the best auspices. The exact opposite of what happened to Sébastien Ogier, the only hope for the Toyota on a day to forget for the Japanese manufacturer, at least until the penultimate race, when a technical problem forced the Frenchman to drop back to fourth position, behind the Korean manufacturer’s trio.

SS1-SS3: Ogier holds Toyota’s honour high

The first morning of the Greek rally was rather complex for Toyota, despite the good signs in the first two special stages. In SS1 and SS2, in fact, Ogier and Katsuta recorded the best times respectively, but the consistency of Ott Tänak rewarded the Estonian driver, leader despite the successes of the Japanese team’s drivers. The 10th round of the championship did not start in the best way for the world championship leader Thierry Neuville, immediately hindered by an engine problem. A similar failure also slowed down Elfyn Evans in SS2, who had already lost time in SS1 for the replacement of a tire. SS3 then closed the first half of the day in favor of Ogier, leader of the last stage and again of the general classification. However, Katsuta’s retirement (stopped by a damaged steering arm) and Evans’ continued engine problems allowed Fourmaux to move up the order to second ahead of the Hyundai trio of Tänak, Sordo and Neuville, all chasing Ogier.

SS4-SS6: Change of leader

The thrill of a virtual podium finish was short-lived for Fourmaux, who was immediately forced to retire in SS4 due to a broken suspension on his Ford after landing on a rather hard jump. The episode allowed the Hyundai drivers to gain a position in the general classification, although still behind Ogier, who was once again the fastest in the first afternoon test. The twists and turns did not end in Greece, however, especially in the penultimate test scheduled for Friday: in SS5, in fact, Ogier lost ground following technical problems, so much so that he ended up in 6th place and handed over the general leadership to Tänak, who thus jumped into the lead just ahead of the Frenchman also thanks to the best time. The day ended with Tänak leading with a 21-second advantage over Sordo and 45 over Neuville, who completed the Hyundai ‘hat trick’ also thanks to his win in SS6, with Ogier in even more difficulty, so much so that he was over 2 minutes behind Tänak following his placing outside the top 10 in the final special stage on Friday.

Acropolis Rally, standings after SS6 (Top-10)