Ogier hits back to win after gear problems
WORLD champion Sebastien Ogier recovered from a broken gearbox to win his fifth Wales Rally GB title in Llandudno yesterday.
Ogier, seeking his sixth consecutive world crown, had slipped to eighth place on Friday but gradually climbed his way back up the leaderboard.
Toyota’s Jari-Matti Latvala pushed Ogier all the way and briefly led yesterday before Ogier finished strongly in his Ford Fiesta to win by 10.6 seconds.
Ogier’s victory saw him move seven points behind overall leader Thierry Neuville, who finished fifth in North Wales. Two rounds of the championship remain.
Belgian Neuville’s hopes of winning disappeared on Saturday when he slid into a ditch, but he came back strongly to finish fifth.
His hopes of any further gains were thwarted by the final stage being shortened following a crash between two motorcyclists performing in a display team in Llandudno.
Estonian Ott Tanak, who was Neuville’s closest rival after winning three races in a row before arriving in Britain, failed to finish in the top 10 after retiring on Saturday but salvaged some bonus points in the power stage.
Neuville now has 189 points to Ogier’s 182, with Tanak on 167. Toyota lead the manufacturers’ championship with 317 to Hyundai’s 297.
The next round is Rally Catalunya in Spain on October 25-28.