NEUVILLE HOLDS ACROPOLIS RALLY LEAD AS PUNCTURES HIT FOURMAUX AND SORDO

HYUNDAI DRIVER RETAINS NARROW ADVANTAGE AFTER DRAMATIC SATURDAY IN GREECE

Thierry Neuville remains in control of Acropolis Rally after Saturday's demanding stages, extending his run at the front despite mechanical damage late in the day and continued pressure from his rivals.

The Hyundai driver and co-driver Martijn Wydaeghe completed six challenging gravel stages across the Peloponnesian mountains, where changing road surfaces and rough conditions tested both crews and machinery.

Saturday's route included Ghymno, Kolines, Menalo Mountain and Kefalari before crews returned to repeat two stages after the midday service. Conditions ranged from sandy sections to rocky terrain, making tyre management and consistency crucial.

Neuville maintained a steady pace throughout the day, recording top-three times on every stage while claiming two stage victories. Despite clipping a bank on the final stage and damaging the Hyundai i20 N Rally1's power steering, he safely reached the overnight halt with a 4.1-second lead.

Adrien Fourmaux and co-driver Alexandre Coria recovered from a small mistake on SS10 after running wide due to an ambitious pace note. The French crew appeared set to consolidate third place before suffering a second puncture on SS12, dropping to sixth overall. They recovered during the final stage to regain fourth position.

Dani Sordo and Cándido Carrera also endured another puncture on Saturday. After producing a consistent performance and setting a top-four stage time on SS12 to climb into seventh overall, the Spaniards were pushed back to eighth following a puncture on the day's final stage.

With only 4.1 seconds separating Neuville from the chasing pack, the fight for victory remains wide open heading into the final day of Acropolis Rally.

KEY POINTS

• Thierry Neuville remains the overall leader after 13 stages.

• Neuville claimed two stage wins on Saturday.

• The Hyundai driver finished the day despite power steering damage.

• Adrien Fourmaux recovered to fourth after suffering a second puncture.

• Dani Sordo dropped to eighth after another puncture.

• Saturday's stages featured demanding sandy and rocky gravel roads.

• The rally lead stands at just 4.1 seconds before the final day.

Crew Notes: Thierry Neuville/Martijn Wydaeghe (#11 Hyundai i20 N Rally1)

Neuville claimed his first stage win of the day on SS10, but saw his advantage almost halved on the final stage of the morning loop, heading into service just 3.7 seconds ahead

The Belgian was quick out of the blocks with a fantastic run through SS12, securing another stage win to extend his gap to 10.8 seconds, before it narrowed again on SS13

Neuville said: “I’m really happy with my day. Much like yesterday, I was feeling really comfortable in the car and managing both my speed and the roughness of the terrain. We’re getting closer to the end of the rally; our plan is to continue pushing to stay in first place. We know it isn’t over until you cross the final finish line, and tomorrow is going to be pretty rough – especially in the Power Stage. We have to cross our fingers and continue the job we’ve been doing so far this rally.”

Crew Notes: Adrien Fourmaux/Alexandre Coria (#16 Hyundai i20 N Rally1)

Frenchmen claimed their fourth stage win of the event on SS9, demonstrating strong pace across the morning loop

The crew was running 56 seconds behind Neuville heading into the afternoon’s stages, but a puncture on SS12 put paid to their strong run; they ended the day fourth

Fourmaux said: “Saturday was quite a challenging day. We were trying to manage the risk of punctures as much as we could, but unfortunately on the second pass of Menalo Mt we suffered one early on. We decided to stop and change, knowing we would lose the podium place. However, although we were sixth, we knew we were only 14 seconds away from fourth, so we pushed hard in the last stage. We managed to gain two positions, one on pace and the other as a result of Elfyn’s puncture. It’s a good road position for tomorrow, when everything is still possible. We are going to try and catch Taka, so my target is to go flat out and finish on the podium.”

Crew Notes: Dani Sordo/Cándido Carrera (#6 Hyundai i20 N Rally1)

A consistent morning from Sordo and Carrera saw them hold eighth place across the four stages, however their afternoon loop was a tale of two halves

The Spaniards set a top-four stage time on SS12 to move up the order, but their second puncture brought an end to their charge

Sordo said: “It is a shame our day ended in the way it did. We had a good stage time on SS12, finishing fourth fastest for the third time here in Greece. On SS13, we encountered rocks in the middle of the road, and we picked up our second puncture of the weekend. Now we focus on Sunday; while there are only four stages, it’s still going to be a long day, and we’re expecting the Power Stage to have a lot of stones. We’ll need to find the balance between pushing for points, and avoiding punctures that could punish us.”

Hyundai Motorsport WRC Sporting Director Andrew Wheatley said: “It has been a strong day for the team, with a fantastic battle at the front of the field between Thierry and Seb Ogier. There’s been a lot of drama for all of our competitors in the championship, as well as for Adrien, who lost two minutes with a puncture on SS12, and Dani who lost a minute with his own on SS13. But this is Greece, it is not meant to be easy and the team has shown the strength of the Hyundai i20 N Rally1 in these difficult conditions. We go into the final day of Acropolis Rally with three cars well prepared for what will be another difficult day, but one that could also deliver a very exciting conclusion to the rally.”

Sunday at a Glance

84km remains to be contested on the final day of Acropolis Rally, including the longest stage of the event

Two tests of Aghii Theodori (SS14/16, 25.39km) and Loutraki (SS15/17, 16.61km) will be run on Super Sunday, split by a mid-morning service.

Classification after Day Two

1 T. Neuville M. Wydaeghe Hyundai i20 N Rally1 2:40:18.7

2 S. Ogier V. Landais Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +4.1

3 T. Katsuta A. Johnston Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +2:17.0

4 A. Fourmaux A. Coria Hyundai i20 N Rally1 +3:00.6

5 J. McErlean E. Treacy Ford Puma Rally1 +3:01.6

6 S. Pajari M. Salminen Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +4:38.3

7 E. Evans S. Martin Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +4:43.1

8 D. Sordo C. Carrera Hyundai i20 N Rally1 +5:17.8

9 A. Mikkelsen J. Listerud Skoda Fabia RS +5:54.6

10 R. Virves J. Viilo Skoda Fabia RS +6:08.5