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There's around 10 minutes to go until SS4 gets underway. Here's ELFYN EVANS to run you through what to expect from the longest stage of the rally so far.
SS4/7 Svullrya (15.46 miles)
"This stage has been reversed from last year, so we know a little bit about this one. There are a lot of character changes here. It starts quite technical, narrow and medium-speed corners, but then it becomes generally faster and wider towards the finish. There are some big jumps towards the finish, it’s quite a Finnish-style road and then there’s a manmade chicane at the end.
"One of the features of this test is the change in tempo. The wide road is interspersed with some really narrow bits where the road goes into the trees. These are the places where you really have to be able to adapt and switch from one style to the other. If you don’t, you could end up getting creamed in there."
SS4/7 Svullrya (15.46 miles)
"This stage has been reversed from last year, so we know a little bit about this one. There are a lot of character changes here. It starts quite technical, narrow and medium-speed corners, but then it becomes generally faster and wider towards the finish. There are some big jumps towards the finish, it’s quite a Finnish-style road and then there’s a manmade chicane at the end.
"One of the features of this test is the change in tempo. The wide road is interspersed with some really narrow bits where the road goes into the trees. These are the places where you really have to be able to adapt and switch from one style to the other. If you don’t, you could end up getting creamed in there."
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DAVID EVANS: Liverpool has a massive global following – and nowhere more so than in Varmland, Sweden. Klopp’s Reds were the only Premier League squad represented on the news stands of downtown Karlstad.
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As you can see, Tanak was the big loser there, dropping from second to sixth.
Lets just take a moment to point out that Sebastien Ogier is ninth overall at the moment. Yes, that's almost solely down to him clearing the road, but even so, he's quite a way down there.
Looking at the times, the top nine down to Ogier is split by just 14.1s. We've seen Ogier take twice that on a stage before now, so he's far from out of the lead battle.
Lets just take a moment to point out that Sebastien Ogier is ninth overall at the moment. Yes, that's almost solely down to him clearing the road, but even so, he's quite a way down there.
Looking at the times, the top nine down to Ogier is split by just 14.1s. We've seen Ogier take twice that on a stage before now, so he's far from out of the lead battle.
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Shall we have a look at what changed overall between SS2 and SS3?
Overall after SS2:
1 Neuville 11m12s
2 Tanak +3s
3 Meeke +3.4s
4 Latvala +4s
5 Ostberg +5.5s
6 Sordo +7.5s
Overall SS3:
1 Neuville 21m22.3s
2 Latvala +4.6s
3 Meeke +9s
4 Sordo +11.1s
5 Ostberg +11.5s
6 Tanak +11.7s
Overall after SS2:
1 Neuville 11m12s
2 Tanak +3s
3 Meeke +3.4s
4 Latvala +4s
5 Ostberg +5.5s
6 Sordo +7.5s
Overall SS3:
1 Neuville 21m22.3s
2 Latvala +4.6s
3 Meeke +9s
4 Sordo +11.1s
5 Ostberg +11.5s
6 Tanak +11.7s
Checkered flag
Here's the times for the leading runners so far:
SS3
1 Neuville 10m10.3s
2 Latvala +0.6s
3 Breen +2.3s
4 Ogier +3.1s
5 Sordo +3.6s
6 Evans +4.7s
Overall
1 Neuville 21m22.3s
2 Latvala +4.6s
3 Meeke +9s
4 Sordo +11.1s
5 Ostberg +11.5s
6 Tanak +11.7s
SS3
1 Neuville 10m10.3s
2 Latvala +0.6s
3 Breen +2.3s
4 Ogier +3.1s
5 Sordo +3.6s
6 Evans +4.7s
Overall
1 Neuville 21m22.3s
2 Latvala +4.6s
3 Meeke +9s
4 Sordo +11.1s
5 Ostberg +11.5s
6 Tanak +11.7s
Stopwatch
Next up, Mads Ostberg. He's only eighth quickest on the stage. He's 6s slower than Neuville there.
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Meeke completes and loses 5.6s to Neuville.
He also loses second place to Latvala but holds third ahead of Sordo.
"We were on the limiter a few times," says Meeke. "The middle section there was quite a bit of camber on the road. Maybe we could of carried more speed. OK, the time isn't fantastic."
He also loses second place to Latvala but holds third ahead of Sordo.
"We were on the limiter a few times," says Meeke. "The middle section there was quite a bit of camber on the road. Maybe we could of carried more speed. OK, the time isn't fantastic."
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Neuville pulls out a brilliant final split to go quickest. Whether it's icey asphalt of Monte Carlo or icey gravel of Sweden, he seems to be the pacesetter. He goes 0.6s quicker than Latvala.
"It's a bit better, but my pacenotes were a bit fast, I had to slow down and lost confidence a bit," says Neuville. "The car is fantastic to drive."
Meeke is well down on Neuville on the splits so the Belgian looks set to hold the lead comfortably.
"It's a bit better, but my pacenotes were a bit fast, I had to slow down and lost confidence a bit," says Neuville. "The car is fantastic to drive."
Meeke is well down on Neuville on the splits so the Belgian looks set to hold the lead comfortably.
Lefebvre is our next car, and then all eyes switch to Neuville. He has 3.4s in hand over Meeke and 4s over Latvala. He's on course to hold the lead ahead of Latvala, but no splits for Meeke just yet.
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Our stage guide-man Elfyn Evans completes the stage and he's 4.1s slower than Latvala.
"The grip was generally OK," says Evans. "The first time here in this car is difficult."
"The grip was generally OK," says Evans. "The first time here in this car is difficult."
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Craig Breen is in and second quickest, 1.7s slower than Latvala.
"I struggled a bit at the start with the notes," says Breen. "The second half of the stage was fantastic, I'm getting more confidence every kilometre."
"I struggled a bit at the start with the notes," says Breen. "The second half of the stage was fantastic, I'm getting more confidence every kilometre."
Stopwatch
Thierry Neuville started this stage ahead of Tanak, but Tanak lost a fair chunk of time. The Belgian will now be keeping an eye on Latvala.
Neuville is 2.2s down at the first split on the Finn.
Neuville is 2.2s down at the first split on the Finn.
Stopwatch
Craig Breen is two seconds up on Sordo at the final split, can the Irishman challenge for a top three time here on his first rally in the 2017-spec Citroen C3 WRC?
Stopwatch
Sordo drops three seconds to Latvala on that stage, the Spaniard has been pretty impressive so far given snow certainly isn't his favoured surface.
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Tanak is 8.1s down on Latvala at the end of the stage. He's 5.6s slower than Ogier.
"I got stuck between two gears and it was distracting," he says. "We never got into a rhythm."
"I got stuck between two gears and it was distracting," he says. "We never got into a rhythm."
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Latvala is in, 2.5s quicker than Ogier. There's no one on the splits looking like they'll challenge that but Meeke and Neuville are still to get underway.
"There were very fast sections," says Latvlala. "I must say it's a nice stage. It's a proper winter rally stage."
"There were very fast sections," says Latvlala. "I must say it's a nice stage. It's a proper winter rally stage."
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Ogier is suffering from deja vous at the stage end, cleaning the roads like he has done so many times.
"The last part of the stage was loose and slippy," he says. "I think it's going to be a difficult day."
"The last part of the stage was loose and slippy," he says. "I think it's going to be a difficult day."
Stopwatch
Tanak has lost more time at the second split, 5.1s slower than Latvala and 3s slower than Ogier.
Stopwatch
Ogier is in and manages a 10m13.4s.
Sordo, Breen and Evans are all into the stage now.
Sordo, Breen and Evans are all into the stage now.
Stopwatch
Latvala's lost 0.3s to Ogier at the second split, but still has 2.1s on the Frenchman.
Stopwatch
For the second stage in a row this morning, Jari-Matti Latvala is quicker than Sebastian Ogier through the first split. He's 2.4s up on Ogier at that point.
Tanak, however, is a second down on Ogier at the same point.
Tanak, however, is a second down on Ogier at the same point.
Stopwatch
Ogier is through the first split in 3m30.9s.
Tanak has also joined the action, second overall heading into this stage.
Tanak has also joined the action, second overall heading into this stage.
In the last stage, it looked like the drivers further down the order had more favourable road conditions. We'll be keeping an eye on that through this stage.
Jari-Matti Latvala has joined the fray. Game on.
Sebastien Ogier is into the SS3 test and it's another two-split job. It's another rapid fire test to kick off Friday morning.
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Interesting points from Evans and we've already heard drivers discussing the handling of the cars over the bumps. The aero – and how the drivers deal with it as Evans alluded to – could make or break a few drivers' rallies.
And here's Wales' fastest WRC driver ELFYN EVANS to run you through what to expect from this test.
SS3/6 Hof-Finnskog (13.21 miles)
"This is a completely new stage for this year. It’s fast with some sections which are extremely fast. It’s not narrow, but equally it’s not a big wide road – but it flows nicely with some crests.
"Coming in the middle of the loop, these are just the kind of stages where we need to be thinking about any jumps we come across and how we deal with them. There’s been a lot of talk about losing the aero, the front splitter and what a difference that would make to the car. Definitely in these kind of places it’s worth a small lift, the time gained by going flat is negligible compared with what you could lose if you have a heavy landing and break the front spoiler."
SS3/6 Hof-Finnskog (13.21 miles)
"This is a completely new stage for this year. It’s fast with some sections which are extremely fast. It’s not narrow, but equally it’s not a big wide road – but it flows nicely with some crests.
"Coming in the middle of the loop, these are just the kind of stages where we need to be thinking about any jumps we come across and how we deal with them. There’s been a lot of talk about losing the aero, the front splitter and what a difference that would make to the car. Definitely in these kind of places it’s worth a small lift, the time gained by going flat is negligible compared with what you could lose if you have a heavy landing and break the front spoiler."
Just over five minutes until SS3 gets underway. Here's a reminder of your starting order.
Sebastien Ogier (Ford Fiesta WRC)
Jari-Matti Latvala (Toyota Yaris WRC)
Ott Tanak (Ford Fiesta WRC)
Dani Sordo (Hyundai i20 WRC)
Craig Breen (Citroen C3 WRC)
Elfyn Evans (Ford Fiesta WRC)
Stephane Lefebvre (Citroen DS 3 WRC)
Thierry Neuville (Hyundai i20 WRC)
Juho Hanninen (Toyota Yaris WRC)
Kris Meeke (Citroen C3 WRC)
Hayden Paddon (Hyundai i20 WRC)
Mads Ostberg (Ford Fiesta WRC)
Sebastien Ogier (Ford Fiesta WRC)
Jari-Matti Latvala (Toyota Yaris WRC)
Ott Tanak (Ford Fiesta WRC)
Dani Sordo (Hyundai i20 WRC)
Craig Breen (Citroen C3 WRC)
Elfyn Evans (Ford Fiesta WRC)
Stephane Lefebvre (Citroen DS 3 WRC)
Thierry Neuville (Hyundai i20 WRC)
Juho Hanninen (Toyota Yaris WRC)
Kris Meeke (Citroen C3 WRC)
Hayden Paddon (Hyundai i20 WRC)
Mads Ostberg (Ford Fiesta WRC)
Stopwatch
The frontrunning WRC2 entries are through SS2 and it's a brilliant time from Skoda driver OC Veiby.
OC, or Ole Christian to give him his full name, is starting only his fourth event in an R5 car. And he's 5s quicker than any of his rivals through there. he leads overall over works Skoda driver Pontus Tidemand by 7.9s.
The likeable Norwegian is the son of Even Management's Erik Veiby, who manages the careers of the likes of Andreas Mikkelsen and Esapekka Lappi. You can't help but think OC is going places and with times like that, he'll deserve it.
WRC2, SS2:
1 Veiby 10m13.4s
2 Suninen +5s
3 Tidemand +6.9s
4 Brynildsen +6.9s
5 Greensmith +17.9
6 Grondal +18.4s
OC, or Ole Christian to give him his full name, is starting only his fourth event in an R5 car. And he's 5s quicker than any of his rivals through there. he leads overall over works Skoda driver Pontus Tidemand by 7.9s.
The likeable Norwegian is the son of Even Management's Erik Veiby, who manages the careers of the likes of Andreas Mikkelsen and Esapekka Lappi. You can't help but think OC is going places and with times like that, he'll deserve it.
WRC2, SS2:
1 Veiby 10m13.4s
2 Suninen +5s
3 Tidemand +6.9s
4 Brynildsen +6.9s
5 Greensmith +17.9
6 Grondal +18.4s
By: Matt Beer
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