WRC Italy
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Ogier is 0.6s down in the final split, but it was in this section that Neuville had one of his moments.
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Neuville is still rather bullish, and is not giving up on this win, but admits he made small errors in there: "I made two mistakes, I was a bit too close to the wall and lost the speed, and then overshot one of the ruts. We are going to give it everything."
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Neuville is through, and beats Latvala by 8.3s. But what can Ogier do? That's what we all want to know.
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Ogier has dropped 0.4s in the next split. But as we say this, Neuville makes a very small mistake through one corner which could wipe out that advantage.
This is incredible! Ogier and Neuville are still tied through the next split.
Splits are in for Ogier, and he is absolutely dead level with Neuville through the second split. The gap remains at 1.3s.
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Latvala meanwhile has set a storming time in here, 9.8s quicker than Paddon's benchmark! Neuville behind is going even quicker though.
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Lappi drops 0.3s to Paddon through this stage, but his third place is secure so that won't concern him.
"Everything is under control. I don't know what to say to be honest, let's see what we can do in the next one," says a very relaxed Lappi.
"Everything is under control. I don't know what to say to be honest, let's see what we can do in the next one," says a very relaxed Lappi.
Ogier is now also into the stage. Remember the gap between him and Neuville is just 1.3s.
Thierry Neuville meanwhile is in the stage and as you'd expect, has set the fastest first split time.
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"It's a reasonably safe margin [to Ostberg], but we've got to keep focused and get the job done," says Paddon.
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Paddon is through in an 8m47s. That's 4.1s up on Ostberg to all but secure his fourth position ahead of the final four miles of the rally.
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"There are a lot of positives to take from this weekend," says Ostberg. "Hayden is going very well today and we've been struggling a bit, so it's like that. The conditions are still tricky so we need to get to the end."
Ostberg's final stage time is an 8m51.1s, 1.1s behind team-mate Breen.
Back in stage, Paddon is continuing to edge away from Ostberg. He's 2.8s up through the penultimate split.
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"I'm sure everybody will save their tyres in here, I'm just trying to enjoy driving a rally car as much as I can," says Breen.
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Craig Breen has just obliterated that, with an 8m50s. That's exactly 21s faster than Evans.
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"It's a lot different to what we saw first thing this morning, it's very abrasive in there now," says Evans. "For the guys that are pushing they may not have much tread left for the power stage."
Evans completed the stage in 9m11s.
Evans completed the stage in 9m11s.
Road cleaning shouldn't be an issue as the drivers ran through this stage two hours earlier, so it looks as if Evans is looking for a steady run to the finish.
Breen is continuing to wipe the floor with Evans. He's 13.1s up after the first half of the stage.
Evans looks like he's taking this stage relatively easily. He's already 4s behind Craig Breen in the opening split.
The battle for the lead isn't the only fight going on this morning. Hayden Paddon and Mads Ostberg are fighting over fourth, but Paddon has stretched that gap up to 11s.
Ott Tanak and Teemu Suninen are both looking to reel in WRC2 opposition to claim as many championship points as possible.
Ott Tanak and Teemu Suninen are both looking to reel in WRC2 opposition to claim as many championship points as possible.
Evans is still outside the top 10 after losing 13 minutes on Friday, so has been treating this rally as a learning exercise.
Green flag
Elfyn Evans has started the stage, kicking off this final loop of Rally Italy.
If the rally were to finish now, it would be the fourth closest WRC event in history. Both Neuville (Argentina 2017, 0.7s) and Ogier (Jordan 2011, 0.2s) have won events by incredibly slim margins in the past.
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Let's turn our attentions to the penultimate test of the rally however. Seb Marshall, who is currently fourth alongside Hayden Paddon, explains its challenges.
SS19 Cala Flumini (8.73 miles)
"Both of these stages are a carbon copy of last year, which makes it easier from the side of the recce. This stage is quite narrow, it twists and turns through some fields – but you’re between the walls and you can tend to get a bit of tunnel vision. The one thing you don’t want to do is clip one of these walls… we did that last year.
"We came through a flat corner over a crest and the wall was sticking out by just a couple of inches at the apex. The margins are so fine there, we clipped it and that was enough to cannon us across the road and into the wall on the other side. After that there’s a quick section on tarmac. It’s quite a nice stage, but I’d imagine this one will clean quite a bit."
SS19 Cala Flumini (8.73 miles)
"Both of these stages are a carbon copy of last year, which makes it easier from the side of the recce. This stage is quite narrow, it twists and turns through some fields – but you’re between the walls and you can tend to get a bit of tunnel vision. The one thing you don’t want to do is clip one of these walls… we did that last year.
"We came through a flat corner over a crest and the wall was sticking out by just a couple of inches at the apex. The margins are so fine there, we clipped it and that was enough to cannon us across the road and into the wall on the other side. After that there’s a quick section on tarmac. It’s quite a nice stage, but I’d imagine this one will clean quite a bit."
Other drivers will be eyeing up the bonus points too after enduring difficult weekends. Ott Tanak, Andreas Mikkelsen and Jari-Matti Latvala are three such drivers who have all shown pace this weekend but don't have the result to match.
There is of course the added lure of five extra bonus points for winning the final stage of the rally as well, the power stage. Expect either Neuville or Ogier to be claiming these as they push to the absolute limit for the event win.
World Rally Championship title rivals Sebastien Ogier and Thierry Neuville are just 1.3 seconds apart heading into the final two stages of Rally Italy.
The upcoming loop comprises of the same two tests as earlier this morning where Neuville took 2.6 seconds from Ogier. Should he continue at that pace Neuville will take the rally lead from his rival.
The upcoming loop comprises of the same two tests as earlier this morning where Neuville took 2.6 seconds from Ogier. Should he continue at that pace Neuville will take the rally lead from his rival.
Welcome back or welcome along if you're just joining us. Can you remember a conclusion to a rally that has been as exciting as this?
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Need a quick summary of those last two stages? You're in luck, our loop report is live.
We'll be back in approximately 15 minutes for a grandstand finish to this Ogier vs Neuville battle. Stay tuned!
We'll be back in approximately 15 minutes for a grandstand finish to this Ogier vs Neuville battle. Stay tuned!
Pierre-Louis Loubet, whose father Yves Loubet was a regular on the Corsican round of the WRC from the mid-1970s to 1990s, has had a terrible run through Sassari-Argentiera here, dropping over a minute and handing fourth place in WRC2 to Fabio Andolfi.
Ole Christian Veiby might have been missing some bodywork from his WRC2 category Skoda Fabia, but it hasn't slowed him down. He cut another 11.6s from Nicolas Ciamin's advantage here. Second place is now only 4.6s away.
Before we take a short break ahead of our next loop, let's tie up a few loose ends.
Mikkelsen's very slow time earlier was nothing untoward. He confirmed to stage reporters he was simply saving as much tyre life as possible ahead of an assault on the points-paying power stage later. You can add him to that list of ones to watch come stage 20, along with Latvala and Tanak.
Mikkelsen's very slow time earlier was nothing untoward. He confirmed to stage reporters he was simply saving as much tyre life as possible ahead of an assault on the points-paying power stage later. You can add him to that list of ones to watch come stage 20, along with Latvala and Tanak.
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Classification after SS18 (Sassari-Argentiera 1)
1. Ogier 3h15m55.6s
2. Neuville +1.3s
3. Lappi +1m34.2s
4. Paddon +2m28.0s
5. Ostberg +2m39.2s
6. Breen +4m03.8s
7. Latvala +11m09.5s
8. Kopecky +12m02.3s
9. Tanak +12m33.9s
10. Prokop +14m36.2s
Outside our top 10, Suninen has moved into 11th, 0.3s ahead of Ciamin and 32.5s behind Prokop.
1. Ogier 3h15m55.6s
2. Neuville +1.3s
3. Lappi +1m34.2s
4. Paddon +2m28.0s
5. Ostberg +2m39.2s
6. Breen +4m03.8s
7. Latvala +11m09.5s
8. Kopecky +12m02.3s
9. Tanak +12m33.9s
10. Prokop +14m36.2s
Outside our top 10, Suninen has moved into 11th, 0.3s ahead of Ciamin and 32.5s behind Prokop.
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Third-placed WRC2 runner Ole Christian Veiby is missing the right corner from his front bumper. He's hit something clearly, but whether that's a nose-first landing from a jump, clipping an object, or something else, we don't know.
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Martin Prokop has spun exiting a hairpin and dumped his 2016-spec Fiesta into some bushes. It's taken him a while to get out and back on his way. That'll help Teemu Suninen in his quest for a point.
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"It's tight. We'll have to push until the end. This stage is about fighting hard with the car. You can be a bit more aggressive but then it's a lot of risk."
That's not really Ogier's style. He likes it smooth and controlled. Neuville meanwhile is relishing these conditions. Can the reigning five-time champion be beaten on merit here?
That's not really Ogier's style. He likes it smooth and controlled. Neuville meanwhile is relishing these conditions. Can the reigning five-time champion be beaten on merit here?
By: Matt Beer
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