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Freddy Loix takes early Ypres Rally lead

Six-time event winner Freddy Loix is edging away from the field in the Intercontinental Rally Challenge's Ypres Rally after the first three stages

Loix (Skoda) was fastest on each test of the opening loop, and though Peugeot UK's Guy Wilks stayed with a few seconds of the Belgian at first, Loix blitzed the field on SS3, Langemark, to extend a 14-second lead over the Briton.

Behind the two leaders, several of the potential podium contenders have already hit trouble. In addition to works Skoda driver Jan Kopecky not starting at all after his co-driver Petr Stary suffered a suspected broken collarbone in a shakedown crash, Andreas Mikkelsen, Thierry Neuville and Bruno Magalhaes are all out already.

Mikkelsen crashed his Skoda UK car in a ditch early on SS1, while Corsica winner Neuville - who took his maiden IRC podium in Ypres last year - picked up a puncture on his Kronos Peugeot and parked with further damage later on the stage.

Magalhaes (Peugeot Portugal) was fourth after SS1, but then an engine problem stopped him on SS2.

With Bryan Bouffier having a small trip off the road on SS2 and then spinning on SS3, local driver Pieter Tsjoen is up to third overall, ahead of series returnee Luca Rossetti's Abarth and Bouffier.

Leading positions after SS3:

Pos  Driver             Team/Car                  Time/Gap
 1.  Freddy Loix        Skoda                     25m39.7s
 2.  Guy Wilks          Peugeot UK (Kronos)        + 14.1s
 3.  Pieter Tsjoen      Kronos Peugeot             + 25.3s
 4.  Luca Rossetti      National Proklama Abarth   + 33.7s
 5.  Bryan Bouffier     PH Peugeot                 + 34.1s
 6.  Hans Weijs         Wevers Skoda               + 37.9s
 7.  Bernd Casier       Duindistel Skoda           + 41.8s
 8.  Toni Gardemeister  TGS Skoda                  + 56.5s
 9.  Michal Solowow     Cersanit Ford              + 58.8s
10.  Karl Kruuda        ME3 Skoda                  + 59.8s

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