Rally Italy: Hyundai's Andreas Mikkelsen leads team-mate Neuville
Andreas Mikkelsen holds a 14-second lead over Hyundai World Rally Championship team-mate Thierry Neuville after winning two of Friday morning's four stages on Rally Italy

Mikkelsen took six soft tyres aboard his i20 Coupe WRC and made the most of them in the damp conditions to win the second stage by 9.1 seconds.
Finally feeling at home in the car after a difficult season so far, the Norwegian also won the following stage to complete the morning at the head of the field.
Neuville was the first man on the road, but overnight rain eradicated the disadvantage of sweeping away the loose gravel.
He confessed to pushing hard and won the final stage of the morning loop by three seconds to overhaul the Toyota of Ott Tanak.
Tanak was the other driver to take a stage win but he struggled to find any confidence with the Yaris after suggesting the front-end of the car was understeering. The Estonian is 16.4 seconds away from the lead after five stages.
Teemu Suninen and Sebastien Ogier lie fourth and fifth respectively for M-Sport, with the two Fords separated by just 0.1 seconds.
Suninen was unhappy with his driving in the slow first and second gear corners but ended the loop ahead of his world champion team-mate who was at a loss to explain his lack of speed.
Jari-Matti Latvala was another driver lacking confidence on Friday morning. The Toyota driver has retired from the last three rallies, but heads to service sixth overall after overtaking Mads Ostberg in the order on stage five.
Ostberg completed Friday's opening stage second fastest but his pace in his Citroen C3 began to fade as the morning wore on. The Norwegian cited his road position as a major factor to his time loss.
Hayden Paddon lies eighth overall on just his third rally of the season, suffering the opposite fortune to team-mate Neuville with the wet conditions ruining any advantage he may have had further down the running order.
Craig Breen is ninth in his Citroen C3 after an overshoot on the second stage, ahead of Toyota's Esapekka Lappi - who suffered a slow puncture on the following stage.
With just one spare tyre remaining, the Finn was forced to drive conservatively for the rest of the morning.
M-Sport's Elfyn Evans dropped the most time on the morning loop, losing 13 minutes on the second stage with a broken steering arm.
Evans ran wide on a slow right-hander and was forced to stop and change the component.
Follow updates from Rally Italy's Friday afternoon stages from 2pm UK time with Autosport Live
Leading positions after SS4
Pos | Driver | Team | Car | Gap |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Andreas Mikkelsen, A.Jager | Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT | Hyundai | 40m14.0s |
2 | Ott Tanak, M.Jarveoja | Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT | Toyota | 14.2s |
3 | Thierry Neuville, N.Gilsoul | Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT | Hyundai | 18.2s |
4 | Teemu Suninen, M.Markkula | M-Sport Ford WRT | Ford | 19.8s |
5 | Sebastien Ogier, J.Ingrassia | M-Sport Ford WRT | Ford | 24.2s |
6 | Mads Ostberg, T.Eriksen | Citroen Total Abu Dhabi WRT | Citroen | 24.9s |
7 | Jari-Matti Latvala, M.Anttila | Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT | Toyota | 25.1s |
8 | Hayden Paddon, S.Marshall | Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT | Hyundai | 29.9s |
9 | Craig Breen, S.Martin | Citroen Total Abu Dhabi WRT | Citroen | 32.2s |
10 | Esapekka Lappi, J.Ferm | Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT | Toyota | 35.3s |

Previous article
Citroen insists it won't quit the World Rally Championship in 2019
Next article
WRC Rally Italy Sardinia: Sebastien Ogier surges from fifth to lead

About this article
Series | WRC |
Drivers | Andreas Mikkelsen , Thierry Neuville |
Author | Luke Barry |
Rally Italy: Hyundai's Andreas Mikkelsen leads team-mate Neuville
Trending
Why the casualty of rallying's evolution should still be cherished
The WRC's support categories are in a process of streamlining that will spell the end of a formalised 2WD world championship-level category. While its relevance to the top level has been questioned for some time, that doesn't mean it should be swept quietly under the carpet
Why WRC's hybrid path could leave it at a crossroads
With all three major manufacturers committing to the World Rally Championship’s hybrid era from 2022, the future of the series is assured for now, but it could lead to trickier twists and turns further down the road
How Tanak froze out the competition at the Arctic Rally
Ott Tanak made up for a disastrous Monte Carlo Rally by leading all the way on the snow-kissed stages of the Arctic Rally Finland and in the process hit back at an event Toyota had been expected to dominate
What to expect from the WRC's venture to the Arctic
This week's Arctic Rally Finland will bring the World Rally Championship into new territory. And, almost without exception, the service park can't wait for the subzero challenge to commence
How Ogier achieved a fitting Monte Carlo farewell
Against pandemic-shaped odds, the World Rally Championship season opener went ahead in Monte Carlo last weekend as a familiar face again took top spot. But for an emotional Sebastien Ogier, his record-breaking eighth win meant more than most
What to look out for in the 2021 WRC
As the 2021 World Rally Championship prepares to launch amid tight COVID-19 restrictions in Monte Carlo, here are the eight things unrelated to the pandemic that you should keep an eye on this year
Evans on the talking points of WRC 2021
He came close to the title last year, and now Toyota's Elfyn Evans gives his verdict on what to expect from 2021 as the World Rally Championship prepares to reconvene for the Monte Carlo season opener
Why Britain's continued WRC absence is a wake-up call
OPINION: With Rally GB dropping off the World Rally Championship calendar for the second year in a row, one of Britain's best-attended sporting events faces an uncertain future. It's an unfortunate situation that points to troubling times ahead