WRC Rally Italy: Sebastien Ogier leads early Citroen one-two – WRC

Sebastien Ogier established an early 0.1-second lead on the World Rally Championship’s Rally Italy over Citroen team-mate Esapekka Lappi after the opening superspecial on Thursday night.

Ogier raced championship rival Ott Tanak on the Ittiri Arena Show stage, and beat the Toyota driver by a mere 0.3s in what was the final heat.

Lappi was one of the first WRC drivers to tackle the stage after another disappointing rally in Portugal, but made a bright start to lie second overnight – 0.2s up on Tanak in third.

Tanak’s team-mate Kris Meeke was fourth fastest, losing out to Tanak by just 0.1s. That means only 0.4s separates the leading four crews heading into Friday’s first day of full-length stages.

Teemu Suninen made a positive start to his first rally with Mikko Hirvonen’s former co-driver Jarmo Lehtinen. The M-Sport driver completed the Ittiri Arena Show stage 1.6s slower than Ogier to sit fifth overall.

Hyundai’s Thierry Neuville and M-Sport’s Elfyn Evans squared off in the penultimate heat, and set an identical time on the short 1.2 mile stage. The pair are equal sixth, 1.8s away from the lead.

Dani Sordo lies eighth overnight, 0.2s behind Neuville and Evans but 0.1s ahead of his Hyundai team-mate Andreas Mikkelsen.

Mikkelsen, contesting his first event since his podium on Rally Argentina, beat Toyota’s Jari-Matti Latvala in his heat, with Latvala complaining about brakes “that were not biting” through the watersplash. Mikkelsen is 2.1s away from the rally lead with Latvala a further 1.9s back.

WRC2 Pro leader Kalle Rovanpera is 11th after beating returnee Juho Hanninen’s Toyota Yaris WRC in his Skoda Fabia R5 by 0.3s in their all-Finnish heat.

Hanninen, who is competing with the works Toyota team for the first time since Rally GB 2017, is equal 12th with Citroen WRC2 Pro driver Mads Ostberg.

Leading positions after SS1