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WRC Argentina
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Crash
Double problem for Citroen? Breen is due at the end of the stage and hasn't made it.
Stopwatch
So Evans's lead will be getting bigger and bigger, he's fastest of all at split two and is going to add another 3s to his advantage over new second-place man Latvala.
Not yet clear what's wrong for Meeke, but he is static on the tracking system around the halfway point of the stage. Paddon and Evans have passed him.
If Meeke is in trouble, that's going to elevate Latvala's Toyota to second and potentially give Evans a very big lead!
Crash
Citroen reports Meeke has stopped on the stage!
Stopwatch
Tanak is second fastest to Latvala on the stage now, 2.8s off the Toyota, and that should bring him up to fourth, ahead of Ogier and Neuville - but 9.8s behind Latvala, who's looking pretty comfy in third now.
Neuville jumped out of the car, dodged the interviewers, looked under the back of his i20 then jumped back in and drove off.
That was rally driver for 'I might have a bigger problem than that broken damper I mentioned earlier'.
That was rally driver for 'I might have a bigger problem than that broken damper I mentioned earlier'.
Stopwatch
But again, no one has an answer to Evans - he's fastest at split one by 2.5s over Paddon and is 3.1s faster than lead rival Meeke at that point.
On this form, Evans's lead will get into double figures by the end of this stage!
On this form, Evans's lead will get into double figures by the end of this stage!
Stopwatch
Paddon is now fastest of all at split one, definitely looking like there was little harm done to his Hyundai when he rolled it on SS2.
Ouch, Neuville and the broken damper are 20.1s slower than Latvala on that stage. That very close third place battle is spreading out.
Ogier looks like he'll drop behind team-mate Tanak too, so he's likely to end this stage either fifth or sixth depending on what Ostberg does later.
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Stopwatch
Latvala is through and he's a massive 8.8s quicker than Ogier, which puts them 12.1s apart now.
And even as that time comes in, Ogier is reporting this has been the worst stage of the day so far for running first on the dusty road being a problem.
And even as that time comes in, Ogier is reporting this has been the worst stage of the day so far for running first on the dusty road being a problem.
After a decent first split, Neuville and his broken damper are losing a few seconds to the rest of the third-place gaggle now. Expect him to fall behind Tanak to seventh on their respective present pace.
Sordo is 21st overall, out of 22 runners, 11m32s off leader Evans.
But expect rapid progress through the local runners - first target Sergio Emiliano Bion's Ford Ka (yes, Ford Ka) is just 23s ahead.
But expect rapid progress through the local runners - first target Sergio Emiliano Bion's Ford Ka (yes, Ford Ka) is just 23s ahead.
Stopwatch
Sordo is good at fixing steering arms: his repaired Hyundai is second fastest at split one, just 0.2s off pacesetter Tanak.
Stopwatch
Back in the podium battle, another strong stage from Latvala - he's 4.2s up on Ogier at split two and seemingly cementing this current third place.
Fastest of all at split one is Tanak as his little surge continues. He's got a chance of jumping a few people in that tight third-to-seventh pack.
Fastest of all at split one is Tanak as his little surge continues. He's got a chance of jumping a few people in that tight third-to-seventh pack.
Just waiting for the last of the local crews to see where that delay has put Sordo overall, but in other delayed Hyundai news: Paddon is now 13th overall, just behind WRC2 lead battlers Pontus Tidemand and Hubert Ptaszek.
Paddon's actually less than a minute off getting back into the points, which says something about a) how little time he lost in that roll and b) how much Hanninen's 10th-placed Toyota is limping with its lack of power.
Paddon's actually less than a minute off getting back into the points, which says something about a) how little time he lost in that roll and b) how much Hanninen's 10th-placed Toyota is limping with its lack of power.
Sordo is back in his correct place in the running order despite that 11-minute delay as he changed the steering arm on the previous stage. He's started SS4 now.
Stopwatch
Despite that broken damper, Neuville is 1.5s faster than Ogier at split one. There was only 1s between them in fifth and sixth heading onto the stage.
80% of that podium battle is onto the stage, Ogier is past split one, with Latvala, Neuville and Ogier also all up and running.
Then most of the rest of the field is either delayed already or battling for third - just seven seconds covers Latvala, Ostberg, Ogier, Neuville and Tanak in the podium fight now, though this battle is already 20s off Evans up front.
Meeke is giving chase, Sordo was too until he broke a steering arm on the last stage.
If you're just joining us - ELFYN EVANS IS LEADING ON DMACKS!
Information
SS4 Santa Rosa – San Agustin (14.82 miles)
For some people the most famous part of the Rally Argentina route is the rocks at the start of El Condor. For others, it's the watersplash just after the start of this stage. This is the one which caught Petter Solberg and his Ford Focus WRC out in 1999.
While the weather has dried out a little in the last couple of days, the drivers are expecting these watersplashes to be fuller than on the recce.
Generally, this stage is fast and flowing, but again it has quite a soft and sandy surface. From the recce the drivers reported the final section was getting quite rough and, if the road is going to degrade quickly, they expect that to come in the last couple of miles.
For some people the most famous part of the Rally Argentina route is the rocks at the start of El Condor. For others, it's the watersplash just after the start of this stage. This is the one which caught Petter Solberg and his Ford Focus WRC out in 1999.
While the weather has dried out a little in the last couple of days, the drivers are expecting these watersplashes to be fuller than on the recce.
Generally, this stage is fast and flowing, but again it has quite a soft and sandy surface. From the recce the drivers reported the final section was getting quite rough and, if the road is going to degrade quickly, they expect that to come in the last couple of miles.
Green flag
Quick-fire loop this one - straight onto SS4 now.
David Evans
DMACK has brought a new tyre here, which is certainly paying off at the moment with Evans leading. It's a slightly harder version of the previous DMACK soft compound.
It's a bit lighter too, with some weight taken out of the side wall. DMACK isn't concerned about durability on that front, but it is potentially a bit more vulnerable to damage if the stages get really rough.
It's a bit lighter too, with some weight taken out of the side wall. DMACK isn't concerned about durability on that front, but it is potentially a bit more vulnerable to damage if the stages get really rough.
Information
SS3 summary:
* Flying Evans gets another stage win and leads by 8.7s
* Sordo drops back from third after breaking a steering arm
* Latvala moves up to third, fending off Ostberg, Ogier and Neuville
* Neuville struggling with a broken damper
* Hanninen's down-on-power Toyota loses another minute
* Paddon is back on the pace after rolling on SS2
* Flying Evans gets another stage win and leads by 8.7s
* Sordo drops back from third after breaking a steering arm
* Latvala moves up to third, fending off Ostberg, Ogier and Neuville
* Neuville struggling with a broken damper
* Hanninen's down-on-power Toyota loses another minute
* Paddon is back on the pace after rolling on SS2
Information
SS3 results:
Stage times:
1 Evans 10m18.8s
2 Meeke +2.3s
3 Tanak +2.7s
4 Ogier +7.1s
5 Ostberg +7.2s
6 Latvala +7.6s
Overall leaderboard:
1 Evans
2 Meeke +8.7s
3 Latvala +20.8s
4 Ostberg +24.0s
5 Ogier +24.1s
6 Neuville +25.1s
7 Tanak +27.8s
8 Breen +37.6s
Stage times:
1 Evans 10m18.8s
2 Meeke +2.3s
3 Tanak +2.7s
4 Ogier +7.1s
5 Ostberg +7.2s
6 Latvala +7.6s
Overall leaderboard:
1 Evans
2 Meeke +8.7s
3 Latvala +20.8s
4 Ostberg +24.0s
5 Ogier +24.1s
6 Neuville +25.1s
7 Tanak +27.8s
8 Breen +37.6s
Quote
Ostberg says he struggled with vision in the dust on that stage - normally that wouldn't be an issue with three-minute gaps, but Hanninen and Sordo's delays meant they were both not far in front of him.
Good run from Ostberg, he's fifth quickest on the stage and that keeps him juuuust ahead (or 0.1s in numbers rather than hyperbole) of Ogier for what has become fourth overall. He's 3.2s behind Latvala in third.
Crash
Sordo explains he had to stop and change a broken steering arm after smacking a big rock.
And Hanninen's Toyota has lost its front aero, just like Latvala's did - though J-ML has already said that wasn't a huge problem.
Crash
Sordo reaches the finish too, with a time loss of 11 and a half minutes.
Crash
Hanninen's down-on-power Toyota has lost over a minute on that stage, so is nearly two minutes adrift overall already. That power loss developed after a big impact on one of the vicious compressions of SS2.
Quote
Evans says his driving was pretty good, the car's set-up isn't quite right, and the tyres are rather decent.
Crash
Sordo, who was pushing Meeke for second at the start of this stage, is back on the move after whatever his problem was but it's cost him 10s.
Paddon reports that the only major worry after his SS2 roll is that the cooling fan isn't working on his Hyundai, so he's trying not to hang around.
Stopwatch
Evans loses a bit of ground in the last few miles but he's 2.3s faster than Meeke and now leads the rally by 8.7s.
Hanninen's troubles are continuing, he's already lost another 40s on this stage.
By: Matt Beer
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