Jyväskylä (Finland) (AFP)
Jari-Matti Latvala (Toyota) and his team-mate Ött Tänak fought a fierce battle for control of the Rally Finland, the 9th round of the World Rally Championship (WRC).
"It's an incredible fight," said the Finn at the finish of the second stage, the longest of the day, which allowed him to regain the lead of the race which he had been dispossessed at the 1st special of the day by Estonian.
It was Tänak who won the first scratch of the day and Kris Meeke, also on Toyota, the second, confirming the domination of the Japanese brand - whose rally team is installed in Finland and led by the former champion Finnish Tommi Mäkinen - on the test.
In general, Latvala now precedes Tänak by 2 tenths and Meeke by 6 tenths. Next is Finland's Esapekka Lappi (Citroën) at 6.5 seconds and, much further, the Irishman Craig Breen (Hyundai) at 26.8 seconds.
Frenchman Sébastien Ogier (Citroën) is 7th at 29 seconds. "I had a painful night, I completely emptied," said the six-time world champion. Appearing visibly tired, he managed to keep up the pace in the first two stages of the day. This allows him to beat the Belgian Thierry Neuville (Hyundai), 8th at 44.4 seconds.
In the world championship, Tänak preceded the Ogier Rally of Finland by 4 points and Neuville by 7 points, while there are still six races to run by the end of the season, including the current one.
The competitors have yet to play 6 specials on Saturday, the rally ending Sunday.
© 2019 AFP