Ott Tänak leads the standings after six special stages, covering a total of 135.02 kilometres. The Estonian Hyundai driver repeatedly commented that at the EKO Acropolis Rally, nothing can be taken for granted, up until he reached the evening service. Many of his competitors experienced this from the very first stage, and it’s no surprise that by the end of the day, the crew that managed to avoid most of the issues and drove smart and consistently fast was “rewarded”. While Ott Tänak struggled at times with the setup of his Hyundai i20 N Rally1, his overall performance remained consistently top-tier.

In the Toyota camp, the leader up until the fourth stage, Sébastien Ogier, saw his efforts fade, losing around 2.5 minutes due to a turbo issue in his GR Yaris Rally1 by the time he returned to the night service. Mechanical issues also ended Elfyn Evans’ hopes for success on the Greek stages, while overall, Toyota Gazoo Racing will want to forget this day, with Takamoto Katsuta retiring after an off that cost him a wheel.

As a result, Hyundai Shell Mobis currently enjoys a '1-2-3' overall, although it wasn’t an easy case. More specifically, Dani Sordo finished the day in second place, but in the afternoon loop, he was forced to drive without the support of the hybrid unit in his i20 N. Thierry Neuville, who was cleaning the road, also encountered an engine issue that left his i20 N running on three cylinders during the morning loop. Despite this, he ends the day completing Hyundai’s ideal ‘1-2-3’.

At M-Sport Ford, there’s only disappointment, and not without reason. The team saw Adrien Fourmaux, who performed brilliantly in the morning loop, retire in the fourth stage due to a broken suspension after hitting a rock on a jump, while he was second in his Ford Puma Rally1. Gregoire Munster, wasn’t spared either, as he dealt with a malfunctioning handbrake for much of the rally, and a puncture towards the end of the loop capped his day.

Sébastien Ogier, who openly stated that Thierry Neuville held him up during the day's first stage, now stands fourth behind the Hyundais. Estonian Robert Virves, driving a Skoda Fabia Rally2, is fifth and leads the WRC2. Rally2-spec crews are impressively high in the overall classification, benefiting from the challenges faced by Rally1 competitors.

In their close battle, Virves is just 1.5 seconds ahead of Sami Pajari (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2), who lost time in the morning after a puncture. Greek Panagiotis Roustemis, driving a Skoda Fabia RS Rally2, has climbed to 16th overall and leads the Greek crews! The talented Greek driver has set some excellent times while avoiding issues. Among the Greek competitors, Lambros Athanassoulas was unlucky, retiring after an off, while Vassilis Velanis suffered from steering rack problems. Giorgos Amoutzas also didn’t get a taste of the rally, as the crew lost their timecard and were excluded for the first day.

In JWRC, although Maior Norbert leads among the future Champions, it’s Estonian Romet Jurgenson in second place who has the broadest smile, as this result keeps him mathematically in contention for the title. However, the driver stealing the spotlight in the category is Turkey’s Ali Turkkan, who sits third and would be leading comfortably if not for a puncture.

As all the crews have mentioned, tomorrow is expected to be the toughest day of the rally. The schedule includes five gruelling stages with no intermediate service, culminating in the EKO Super Special Stage, in front of thousands of spectators. The applause will reveal who has the strength to claim the most they can from the Rally of Gods on a day that spans a total of 695.64 kilometres.

 

For high-resolution photos, click here.