Eight-time world champion Ogier and co-driver Vincent Landais managed to avoid drama from 22 challenging gravel stages to take a second win from his 2024 partial campaign by 7.9s from Tanak, who secured his best result of the season so far.
Ogier’s run to victory helped the Frenchman eclipse 1978 world champion Markku Alen as the most successful driver in Rally Portugal history.
Championship leader Hyundai’s Neuville produced an impressive drive to round out the podium [+1m09.8s] despite facing the disadvantage of starting first on the road on Friday.
Ogier, making his first WRC appearance on gravel since Acropolis last year, initially struggled with the balance of his GR Yaris on Friday morning. However, a big push on stage nine hauled the Frenchman from fourth to second just one second behind leader and team-mate and fellow part-time driver Kalle Rovanpera.
Friday’s eight stages proved to be hotly contested as 9.1s covered the top six after the morning loop while 5.4s split the top four heading into Saturday.
Ogier assumed the rally lead after stage 11 when Rovanpera misjudged a right-hand corner and clouted a tree which pitched his GR Yaris into a roll. The victory battle developed into a head-to-head with Tanak after Friday morning leader Takamoto Katsuta clipped a rock in stage 12 causing terminal damage to his Toyota’s rear suspension.
Tanak had been fighting with the balance of his i20 N through Friday but was able deliver blistering pace in heat on Saturday. A stunning effort in the first pass of Amarante, 37.24km pushed Tanak into the rally lead by 0.2s over Ogier. The Estonian became the fifth different leader in 12 stages.
Ott Tänak, Martin Järveoja, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1
Photo by: McKlein / Motorsport Images
However, a slow puncture for Tanak in stage 13 cost him 13.8s to Ogier who moved back into the lead he would hold until the finish. Back-to-back stage wins in Felgueiras 2 and Montim 2 for Tanak applied pressure on Ogier as the gap reduced to 7.8s.
Ogier issued an immediate response to open up the lead which he controlled through Sunday’s four stages to claim the win. The Frenchman claimed 25 points after finishing third in the Super Sunday standings which added five points to his 18 from Saturday in addition to two points from the Power Stage.
Tanak secured a much-needed 26 points which helped move him to third in the championship, ahead of M-Sport’s
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Motorsport.com – RALLY – Stories…