Rally Sweden 2014
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Robert Kubica, SS20 is waiting for you. Yes, we expected a start about three minutes ago...
We're excited to see how this Mikkelsen/Ostberg fight develops. A lot can happen, and we've seen a bit of everything this week, but you have to say Latvala's looking very good right now.
However, that could change very quickly...
However, that could change very quickly...
This quiet spell is a good chance to check where Kris Meeke and Robert Kubica are after this morning's various dramas.
Meeke has fallen to 14th, but has a very good shot of climbing back up to 11th in all fairness. Though that's scant consolation after the top six he looked set for at the start of the day.
Kubica, meanwhile, is 26th, one place and two minutes behind Juho Hanninen.
This was Kubica at 7am this morning, showing he's a man of the people by going out and signing plenty of autographs for the hardy souls who stood out and waited for him.
So, with the final stage of this morning's loop to come, will Latvala consolidate his lead? Will he come unstuck? Can Ostberg overhaul Mikkelsen?
We'll have more of an answer to those questions, and more, before too long. Varmullsasen has been put back to a start time of 09:35 GMT.
Remember, it's the scene of the rally-ending powerstage, so plenty at stake over the 15.87km route.
We'll have more of an answer to those questions, and more, before too long. Varmullsasen has been put back to a start time of 09:35 GMT.
Remember, it's the scene of the rally-ending powerstage, so plenty at stake over the 15.87km route.
The next stage has been put back a bit in start time. Which gives us chance for a WRC2 update, seeing as we've neglected that this morning.
Karl Kruuda takes the latest stage win (which is as good an excuse as any to show you his cool livery for this rally), but Yazeed Al-Rajhi leads Jari Ketomaa by more than a minute overall.
Brilliant from Neuville, who says the Hyundai's handling needs some work.
When that crew strings together its first proper week/weekend, it will be incredibly fascinating.
When that crew strings together its first proper week/weekend, it will be incredibly fascinating.
Checkered flag
Overall leaderboard:
1 Latvala (VW)
2 Mikkelsen (VW) +36.9s
3 Ostberg (Citroen) +55.1s
4 Hirvonen (M-Sport Ford) +1m39.9s
5 Tanak (M-Sport Ford) +2m04.6s
6 Solberg (Solberg Ford) +3m34.7s
7 Ogier (VW) +4m15.2s
8 Tidemand (M-Sport Ford) +4m26.6s
9 Evans (M-Sport Ford) +5m20.9s
10 Breen (KelTech Ford) +7m15.3s
Leading SS19 times:
1 Latvala (VW)
2 Neuville (Hyundai) +1.9s
3 Ostberg (Citroen) +2.6s
4 Mikkelsen (VW) +3.7s
5 Hanninen (Hyundai) +12.3s
1 Latvala (VW)
2 Mikkelsen (VW) +36.9s
3 Ostberg (Citroen) +55.1s
4 Hirvonen (M-Sport Ford) +1m39.9s
5 Tanak (M-Sport Ford) +2m04.6s
6 Solberg (Solberg Ford) +3m34.7s
7 Ogier (VW) +4m15.2s
8 Tidemand (M-Sport Ford) +4m26.6s
9 Evans (M-Sport Ford) +5m20.9s
10 Breen (KelTech Ford) +7m15.3s
Leading SS19 times:
1 Latvala (VW)
2 Neuville (Hyundai) +1.9s
3 Ostberg (Citroen) +2.6s
4 Mikkelsen (VW) +3.7s
5 Hanninen (Hyundai) +12.3s
Great run from the two Hyundais on that stage. They're slipping under the radar by running after the rally frontrunners, but Neuville goes an impressive second fastest and Juho Hanninen is fifth.
What might have been...
What might have been...
Latvala goes 3.7s quicker than Mikkelsen to further increase his rally lead.
Mikkelsen's in and drops 1.1s to Ostberg. That means there is 18.2s between them, and surely that battle will be the focal point for the rest of the rally.
Ostberg's time was 13m52.7s. How will the VWs compare?
Quote
Meeke reflects a bit more on that minor shunt on the previous stage. "It's the first time in my career I've spun on the inside of a corner," he says, and it's almost with a smile.
Mikkelsen's dropped a bit of time at the third split, but he's still very much in the game.
Ostberg, wow - that's some effort. He's 10s quicker than Ogier!
Some more times. 14m07.8s for Hirvonen, and that's edged him further clear from Tanak, who is 11s slower than his rally team-mate.
Meeke's through without a repeat of his SS18 dramas, but his more cautious and finishes 17.3s slower than Ogier.
Meeke's through without a repeat of his SS18 dramas, but his more cautious and finishes 17.3s slower than Ogier.
What do the splits tell us? Ostberg is rapid...
...but Mikkelsen is quicker than Latvala! It's almost inconceivable that he'll overturn his team-mate's deficit, but the early signs are his Polo WRC is absolutely fine.
...but Mikkelsen is quicker than Latvala! It's almost inconceivable that he'll overturn his team-mate's deficit, but the early signs are his Polo WRC is absolutely fine.
Tidemand sneaks in ahead of Evans on that stage, beating him by 8.9s.
The next batch of cars finish the stage. Ogier tops the lot (14m03.4s), with Solberg keeping him honest and going just 1.9s slower.
Evans is a further 24s off the pace, but is doing a cracking job when you think of the more experienced drivers who have made errors on this rally.
Evans is a further 24s off the pace, but is doing a cracking job when you think of the more experienced drivers who have made errors on this rally.
We've had the first few runners complete SS19.
Prokop's 14m35.2s is quickest of the five so far. Breen (+5.9s), Kubica (+34.2s), al Qassimi (+44.5s) and Solowow (+1m00.4s) are the others.
Prokop's 14m35.2s is quickest of the five so far. Breen (+5.9s), Kubica (+34.2s), al Qassimi (+44.5s) and Solowow (+1m00.4s) are the others.
Breaking news
SS17/18 summary:
If you're just joining us, here are the main talking points from this morning's pair of stages.
* Latvala's lead has grown considerably this morning, first to just over 7s and then to 33.2s after VW team-mate Andreas Mikkelsen hit some snow on SS18, dropping a lot of time and damaging his car.
* Kris Meeke dropped out of sixth with his own SS18 incident, clipping a bank and getting his Citroen stuck in a ditch. He has fallen outside of the top 10.
* Sebastien Ogier's charge has continued. He's up to eighth after Meeke's problems, and has seventh (Pontus Tidemand) just 5s ahead of him.
Checkered flag
Overall leaderboard:
1 Latvala (VW)
2 Mikkelsen (VW) +33.2s
3 Ostberg (Citroen) +52.5s
4 Hirvonen (M-Sport Ford) +1m22.1s
5 Tanak (M-Sport Ford) +1m35.9s
6 Solberg (Solberg Ford) +3m19.5s
7 Tidemand (M-Sport Ford) +3m56.3s
8 Ogier (VW) +4m01.9s
9 Evans (M-Sport Ford) +4m41.7s
10 Breen (KelTech Ford) +6m24.3s
Leading SS18 times:
1 Latvala (VW)
2 Ogier (VW) +5.4s
3 Ostberg (Citroen) +7.0s
4 Hanninen (Hyundai) +12.3s
5 Tanak (M-Sport Ford) +13.0s.
1 Latvala (VW)
2 Mikkelsen (VW) +33.2s
3 Ostberg (Citroen) +52.5s
4 Hirvonen (M-Sport Ford) +1m22.1s
5 Tanak (M-Sport Ford) +1m35.9s
6 Solberg (Solberg Ford) +3m19.5s
7 Tidemand (M-Sport Ford) +3m56.3s
8 Ogier (VW) +4m01.9s
9 Evans (M-Sport Ford) +4m41.7s
10 Breen (KelTech Ford) +6m24.3s
Leading SS18 times:
1 Latvala (VW)
2 Ogier (VW) +5.4s
3 Ostberg (Citroen) +7.0s
4 Hanninen (Hyundai) +12.3s
5 Tanak (M-Sport Ford) +13.0s.
What a dramatic SS18. The next stage, the long 24km Vargasen run, is underway.
Breaking news
Our man David Evans says Mikkelsen's problems were self-inflicted - but it's not definitely rally-ending.
"Broken suspension on front-right came from cutting a corner," he notes. "Obviously scooped a load of snow into the front of the Polo when it went off the road.
"There's always a lot of smoke from these engines when the air intake gets blocked. Provided they get air flowing through the engine quickly, they should be fine - if the oil and water temperatures haven't gone up too much.
"Broken suspension on front-right came from cutting a corner," he notes. "Obviously scooped a load of snow into the front of the Polo when it went off the road.
"There's always a lot of smoke from these engines when the air intake gets blocked. Provided they get air flowing through the engine quickly, they should be fine - if the oil and water temperatures haven't gone up too much.
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Mikkelsen's VW is off to technical control. He's seventh quickest, and Latvala finishes to push his lead north of 30s.
"It looks like he's having a problem," says Latvala. "I hope he carries on. That's the main thing now."
"It looks like he's having a problem," says Latvala. "I hope he carries on. That's the main thing now."
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Well, that drama has been played down by the man himself.
"It should be fine," says an amazingly calm Mikkelsen.
For a second, we were worried it was a rally-ending mechanical problem. We'll have to see, but he's dropped a massive amount of time to Latvala now.
"It should be fine," says an amazingly calm Mikkelsen.
For a second, we were worried it was a rally-ending mechanical problem. We'll have to see, but he's dropped a massive amount of time to Latvala now.
Crash
Drama! Mikkelsen's car looks to be billowing smoke as he finishes the stage. Those at the stage end suggest he's been off. He's out of the car...
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A minor error from Meeke, he reveals, but one that's quite costly.
"I was taking it really, really steady. My inside wheel just caught the bank and it just dropped the front wheel off the road. We just couldn't get out. Eventually one or two spectators came and we dug it out.
"Everything's fine. It's frustrating but you have to learn these things."
"I was taking it really, really steady. My inside wheel just caught the bank and it just dropped the front wheel off the road. We just couldn't get out. Eventually one or two spectators came and we dug it out.
"Everything's fine. It's frustrating but you have to learn these things."
Before that, though, Meeke is in...
Stonking run through from Ostberg. He's even quicker than Ogier!
Tanak, meanwhile, has had a good stage - because team-mate and rival for fourth place Mikko Hirvonen has an unspectacular run.
The gap is cut by 2.6s, and there's 13.8s between them now.
The gap is cut by 2.6s, and there's 13.8s between them now.
Meeke is moving again. That's better news, but he will plummet down the order now.
Crash
Confirmation that Meeke's had a spin of some kind.
"He was blocking the road and stuck in a ditch on the inside of the corner," says Tanak, who completes the stage in 10m47.8s to go second quickest.
"There was just one spectator so it would be big work for them."
"He was blocking the road and stuck in a ditch on the inside of the corner," says Tanak, who completes the stage in 10m47.8s to go second quickest.
"There was just one spectator so it would be big work for them."
Meanwhile, Tidemand has finished the stage. He's fourth quickest thus far, 1.4s slower than Evans. Tidemand's Ogier's next target.
Breaking news
Uh-oh, Meeke fans. He's been passed by two cars on the stage...and we reckon he's stopped. Nightmare.
Solberg, by the way, splits Ogier and Evans. He's 9.9s slower than the VW man.
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Henning Solberg cries out the thoughts of apparently all the drivers in these conditions:
"I tried to push but I can't! It's not possible!"
"I tried to push but I can't! It's not possible!"
Evans does a solid job on SS18 to finish it 24.5s slower than Ogier.
Ogier's blitzed Prokop's benchmark by 29.5s. That's a huge effort from the champion, but will it elevate him up the order?
His progress is one of this morning's big questions. Which, incidentally, we'll point out when the stage is over.
His progress is one of this morning's big questions. Which, incidentally, we'll point out when the stage is over.
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That's a very, very worried Craig Breen that's just finished the stage 6.7s slower than Prokop.
He is absolutely not happy with his car's handling, but he can't peg whether or not that's down to him, the conditions, or the set-up.
"I'm on a wing and a prayer," says a concerned Breen. "It's really not a nice place to be.
"I'm not sure where we're supposed to be. But I'm trying my best."
He is absolutely not happy with his car's handling, but he can't peg whether or not that's down to him, the conditions, or the set-up.
"I'm on a wing and a prayer," says a concerned Breen. "It's really not a nice place to be.
"I'm not sure where we're supposed to be. But I'm trying my best."
Wow, Prokop's not holding back. He completes the stage in 11m09.7s, which blows away the runners so far.
By: Matt Beer, David Evans, Scott Mitchell
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