Neuville Clinches WRC Rally Australia Win After Dramatic Turn of Events

Three of the first five stages on Saturday, including the arduous Nambucca test, one of the longest in the World Rally Championship, were won by Neuville.

Andreas Mikkelsen, his Hyundai teammate, held a lead of 20.1 seconds going into Saturday, but it was wiped out when he had only one spare tire and sustained a double puncture on the second stage of the day.

After striking a bridge on Welshs Creek, fellow podium candidate Kris Meeke broke the suspension on his Citroen C3, forcing Mikkelsen to retire. Meeke would later join Mikkelsen on the sidelines.

Now I have a good lead but we have to be careful. If the rain comes tomorrow it’s going to be very difficult.

-Neuville

Latvala put pressure on Neuville early on and won the morning’s second stage, but he was unable to maintain the pace throughout the remainder of the day and ended up trailing by barely more than 20 seconds at the conclusion of the two Super Specials in Coffs Harbour.

If Thierry is keeping that speed – [I have] no chance,” admitted Latvala.

I hear rain is coming so tomorrow will be difficult and we must stay focused – everything is open.

Ott Tanak is in last place on the podium going into Sunday. The Estonian has a significant lead over the pursuing group while failing to gain ground on the top two.

In his Citroen C3, Craig Breen is in fourth place, ahead of world champion Sebastien Ogier and Hayden Paddon, who acknowledged that “it’s hard to find any positives today”.

Ogier missed a junction on the second lap of the morning and suffered serious front bodywork damage on the opening stage of the shortened afternoon loop.

He is ahead of his countryman Stephane Lefebvre, who struggled to maintain the balance of his C3 during the day, spinning multiple times and lacking the speed to run in the front.

Eighth-place finisher Elfyn Evans says he is eager to move on from this “long and frustrating weekend.”

In the overall classification, Esapekka Lappi is ranked ninth. When there was only one spare, Kalle Rovanpera’s solitary WRC2 participant, who was finishing slightly inside the top 10, had to conclude his Saturday early due to a double puncture. Now, Nathan Quinn completes the top 10.

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