Safari Rally Stage 17: Ogier fastest and takes the lead
French driver Sebastien Ogier steers his Toyota Yaris WRC with French co-driver Julien Ingrassia during the SS17 stage of the 2021 Safari Rally Kenya at Loldia, Naivasha on June 27, 2021.
What you need to know:
- Sébastien Ogier moved into the rally lead thanks to a commanding stage win over the Loldia blast
- M-Sport Ford colleagues Adrien Fourmaux and Gus Greensmith completed the top three on the stage
- Up to five bonus points are on offer for drivers with the leading times
Evans beat his opening run by two seconds to consolidate 10th place and Fourmaux continued to push hard and extended his advantage over Greensmith to 4.7 seconds in the fight for fourth overall.
The Frenchman was 8.5 seconds faster than Evans and second quickest on the stage.
Ogier was quickest and managed to snatch the outright lead for the first time since the super special on Thursday afternoon.
British driver Gus Greensmith drives his Ford Fiesta WRC with Irish co-driver Chris Patterson during the SS17 stage of the 2021 Safari Rally Kenya at Loldia, Naivasha on June 27, 2021.
He headed to the final special with an 8.3-second cushion over a stubborn Katsuta. Tänak was a distant third.
Up to five bonus points are on offer for drivers with the leading times.
Up next: The Wolf power stage, Hell's Gate 2, starts at 1318hrs.
STAGE FLASH
Date: Sunday, June 27th
Day: 3 Flash N°: 17
Special stage: Loldia 2 Distance: 11.33 km
Weather: Cool and overcast
Road conditions: Dry
Car 1. OGIER/INGRASSIA
Snatched the lead of the Safari Rally for the first time since the super special stage on
Thursday afternoon. The Frenchman sets the fastest time. He takes a lead of 8.3 seconds
into the final Wolf Power Stage.
Car 33. EVANS/MARTIN
Consolidated his 10th place with an opening time of 7min 47.3sec.
Car 8. TÄNAK/JÄRVEOJA
Safely through the penultimate stage in third place and takes a 22.9-second cushion over
Fourmaux into the Power Stage.
Car 16. FOURMAUX/JAMOUL
Another fast time by the Frenchman, who stops the clocks in 7min 38.8sec and tightens
his grip on fourth place to 4.7 seconds.
Car 18. KATSUTA/BARRITT
A strong run from the Japanese. He loses the joint outright lead but remains on course for
a first WRC podium and a career-best finish.
