In the 17th stage, the best result was achieved by Ogier (“Toyota GR Yaris”), who finished in nine minutes and 19.2 seconds. He was 1.4 seconds ahead of Finland’s Kalli Rovanperi (Toyota GR Yaris), but the top three was completed by Estonian Ots Tenak (Hyundai Shell Mobis), 2.1 seconds behind Ogier.
Sesk (“Ford Puma”) lost 4.3 seconds.
In stage 18, Tenak was the fastest, who beat Ogier by 1.2 seconds. Sesks took the sixth place (+5.9 seconds), which allowed the Estonian to get significantly closer. Before the last two stages, Seska and Tenaka are separated by 12.7 seconds.
The leading position is kept by Rovanpere, who has a 40.3 second advantage over Ogier, while Cesk, being in third position, is 54 seconds behind. The Latvian crew is separated from the second place by 13.7 seconds.
Two more stages remain on the final day of the competition. “Go3 Sport 1” channel broadcasts the first ever WRC rally in Latvia live.
The crews in Latvia have to perform 20 speed stages with a length of 300.13 kilometers, but together with the crossings they will be more than 1000 kilometers.
At the end of June, Ceska’s crew made their WRC debut, finishing fifth in Rally Poland.
The first WRC stage in Latvia covers the territory from Liepāja to Riga, with speed stages also taking place in Tukums, Talsi and Talsu districts, Kuldīgas and Southern Kurzeme districts.
The season will continue with stages in Finland, Greece, Chile, Germany and Japan.
Last year, Finnish racing driver Kalle Rovanpere became a two-time world champion, securing the title one stage before the end of the season. Rovanpere, who won two Latvian rally championships at the beginning of his career, is not competing in all WRC stages this year.
Source: www.diena.lv
