Another stage win for flying Tanak in Poland

The 39.12km Stanczyki stage is the longest of the day, and features a new surface to test the drivers, as it has only a thin layer of gravel unlike the usual thick covering that the crews have been driving on so far.

Ott Tanak yet again took the stage win, continuing a dominating performance so far today. A time of 19:27.2 is some 4.4 seconds quicker than Andreas Mikkelsen, who’s currently second overall, 9.3 seconds down.

Tanak’s car completes the stage with extreme wear to his front tyres. ‘That’s because we still have a brake problem – sometimes only the fronts are working.’ he reported.

‘Tanak is doing a good job. We will see if he is as fast in the afternoon. And never say Ogier is not a threat either – for sure in the second loop he will be very fast.’ commented Mikkelsen.

Sebastien Ogier’s pace, despite being first on the road, completed the stage third quickest – his pace is evident, as always, and he sits in third overall. ‘The morning loop was good. No tyre issues at all – I think mine must look like new. I was a little hesitant on the first stage perhaps but flat-out after that.’

Jari-Matti Latvala completed the stage 4.4 seconds down on Ogier, fourth fastest in stage and also overall. Kris Meeke and Thierry Neuville complete the top six both in stage and overall.

The crews now head to the Tyre Fitting Zone at Goldap before tackling the day’s second running of the 14.65km Babki stage, a repeat of SS4. It begins at 14:15 local time.