WRC Rally Germany
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Lappi: "There are big cuts nearer to the finish. I've been nowhere [wide], just middle of the road. The time is not the fastest, but quite a relaxed drive and very clean. It's OK"
Stopwatch
It's a 10m55.2s stage time for Lappi, slowest of all so far.
He's 5s down on Ogier, 4s to Neuville and 3.3s slower than Tanak.
He's 5s down on Ogier, 4s to Neuville and 3.3s slower than Tanak.
Lappi will be next in and he's 4.3s slower than Ogier at the final split and 2.3s down on the slowest driver so far, Tanak.
Quote
Tanak: "It was a very clean run. High-speed I didn't feel so comfortable, stability is not so nice."
Short and sweet there.
Short and sweet there.
Stopwatch
Tanak finishes the stage slowest of our three runners so far.
His time of 10m51.9s is 1.7s slower than Ogier and 0.7s slower than Neuville.
His time of 10m51.9s is 1.7s slower than Ogier and 0.7s slower than Neuville.
Quote
Ogier: "It's very close [to Neuville]. Basically, same time. Feeling is OK, not so much grip, a bit of understeer here."
I'm not sure he's quite got his maths up to scratch there. He's one second quicker than his title rival.
I'm not sure he's quite got his maths up to scratch there. He's one second quicker than his title rival.
For comparison, Tanak is a whole 2s slower than Ogier at the last split.
Stopwatch
Ogier finishes the stage in 10m50.2s, he's one second quicker than Neuville.
Quote
Neuville: "I'm not happy with the rhythm, I struggle with the understeer and the oversteer. The car moved around a lot."
Asked if the car or the road hindered grip: "Both. It was not consistent enough."
Asked if the car or the road hindered grip: "Both. It was not consistent enough."
Stopwatch
Neuville ends the stage in 10m51.2s as Ogier hits the final split 0.09s up on the Hyundai driver, making up for lost time.
Neuville is approaching the stage end, hitting the final split in 9m17.4s.
Ogier's lost some time, he's only 0.1s behind Neuville now at the third split.
Ogier's lost some time, he's only 0.1s behind Neuville now at the third split.
Information
This is looking a decent run from Ogier.
Road sweeping doesn't have a big impact here, it's mostly road running with a few cuts to catch a driver out.
Lappi is 0.7s down on Ogier at the first split and he's several cars back from Ogier in the running order.
Road sweeping doesn't have a big impact here, it's mostly road running with a few cuts to catch a driver out.
Lappi is 0.7s down on Ogier at the first split and he's several cars back from Ogier in the running order.
Tanak's clawed some time back to Ogier at the second split, he's just 0.5s behind now, making up 0.4s between splits.
Neuville is into the final stretch now, his third split time is 6m33s as Ogier makes a further 0.5s up on Neuville at the second split.
Tanak is almost a second slower than Ogier at the first split, but he's 0.1s quicker than Neuville.
Toyota's Tanak and Lappi are into the stage.
The Hyundai man has set the first two split times: 2m28s and 4m37.6s.
As he hits the second split, Ogier joins the fray and beats Neuville's first marker by one second.
As he hits the second split, Ogier joins the fray and beats Neuville's first marker by one second.
Quote
Neuville: "This is not the most tricky stage, but it's the most fluid. It's really interesting, it's challenging of course, but not the most difficult."
Rain
There's talk of some rain appearing during this stage, but we said that in Finland and nothing happened.
So take it with a pinch of salt, basically.
So take it with a pinch of salt, basically.
Twitter
Information
WRC2 driver Gus Greensmith's co-driver Stuart Loudon brings us the stage descriptions today.
Here's his take on the upcoming run, which is just minutes away.
SS2 Stein und Wein (12.08 miles)
"The route for last year’s Rally Germany was short on vineyards, which is the nature of stages most people associate with this event.
"This year there are more roads through the vines, starting with this one. The first full-on stage of the event is a mix of vineyards and country roads, a format followed for much of the first day.
"There are plenty of rhythm changes as we go from the quick lanes into the hairpins between the vines where the roads get much narrower and more technical.
"This change of rhythm can make it tough to find a flow through the stage, but on the other hand it does give the brakes a bit of a breather!"
Here's his take on the upcoming run, which is just minutes away.
SS2 Stein und Wein (12.08 miles)
"The route for last year’s Rally Germany was short on vineyards, which is the nature of stages most people associate with this event.
"This year there are more roads through the vines, starting with this one. The first full-on stage of the event is a mix of vineyards and country roads, a format followed for much of the first day.
"There are plenty of rhythm changes as we go from the quick lanes into the hairpins between the vines where the roads get much narrower and more technical.
"This change of rhythm can make it tough to find a flow through the stage, but on the other hand it does give the brakes a bit of a breather!"
Twitter
Autosport
While we've set the scene, it's important to note there's plenty going on off track too.
The drivers were unhappy with the attempt to lower average speeds in Finland, with discussions now planned in Germany:
The drivers were unhappy with the attempt to lower average speeds in Finland, with discussions now planned in Germany:
And the three drivers we have mentioned - Neuville, Ogier and Tanak - are first on the road this morning.
The first stage of today is just under 10 minutes away, and how else would you want to spend a Friday morning?
The first stage of today is just under 10 minutes away, and how else would you want to spend a Friday morning?
Thierry Neuville is still the WRC points leader, but a deliberately conservative approach to Finland brought the gap between himself and current champion Sebastien Ogier to just 21 points.
Will Neuville push in Germany, or play it safe again?
Will Neuville push in Germany, or play it safe again?
Autosport
In case you missed last night's news, your overnight rally leader is Tanak.
He's the man in form after victory in Finland:
He's the man in form after victory in Finland:
Hello and welcome to live coverage of Rally Germany.
By: Matt Beer
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