Rallying-Ogier edges Tanak to win in Sardinia, Evans stays top
Sebastien Ogier clinched a record fifth Rally Italy victory on Sunday, fending off Hyundai's Ott Tanak by 7.9 seconds after a tense final stage in Sardinia, while Toyota teammate Elfyn Evans stayed top of the championship standings.
Ogier, with co-driver Vincent Landais, completed the sixth round of the season in three hours 34 minutes and 24.5 seconds to secure the Frenchman's third win in four starts in a part-time campaign.
The eight-times world champion was beaten by Tanak on the island last year by 0.2 seconds after a final-stage puncture but this time Ogier stayed composed and took the win despite a late wobble.
Ogier had built a 17.1-second cushion heading into the Wolf Power Stage, but the 41-year-old overshot a tight, rutted corner in the final kilometres.
This forced him to stop and reverse after his car refused to turn, cutting his advantage by more than half in a tense finale.
"In the ruts, I just couldn't turn the car," Ogier explained. "There was no speed at all, so I didn't try to force it and hit it - I preferred to stop and reverse. But yeah, not ideal. Still, it was enough to win."
The victory follows hot on the heels of his Rally Portugal triumph and sent Ogier second in the championship with 114 points to Evans' 133.
Toyota, who have won every rally so far this year, also tightened their grip on the manufacturers' race with 312 points to Hyundai's 243.
"There are many places I've won several times," said Ogier.
"It's just a type of rally I like, where precise driving is needed, but also smoothness for tyre management. Thanks to the team, great turnaround after Portugal in terms of speed and set-up, so good job."
Tanak pushed hard in the final stage but fell short, while Kalle Rovanpera, clawing his way up from fifth during Saturday's stages, completed a double podium for Toyota in third, 50.5 seconds behind Ogier.
The Finn dropped to third overall, one point behind Ogier, with Tanak fourth on 108.
Evans and Takamoto Katsuta rounded out a strong showing for Toyota, taking fourth and fifth respectively.
Hyundai's reigning champion Thierry Neuville, fifth in the championship on 83 points, took four points from the Power Stage and one from the 'Super Sunday' format after returning following Friday's retirement.
The next round is in Greece on June 26-29.
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