Rovanpera grabs WRC Rally Paraguay Friday lead as Fourmaux punctures

Hyundai’s Adrien Fourmaux hit trouble late on Rally Paraguay’s opening day, allowing Kalle Rovanpera to inherit an overnight lead the Toyota ace admits he wasn't expecting.

Fourmaux dominated Friday's action, leading for most of the day with a composed drive that put him on the road to what would be a maiden FIA World Rally Championship victory for the 30-year-old Frenchman. But two miles from the finish of the penultimate stage, the 18.64-mile Yerbatera 2 test, a rock impact punctured a tire on his Hyundai i20 N Rally1 and handed the overnight advantage to a surprised Rovanpera.

“It's just a shame for the puncture, but that's rallying,” said Fourmaux, whose pace had been the standout performance on roads that humbled far more experienced rivals as Paraguay makes its WRC debut.

Hyundai’s Adrien Fourmaux was dominating Rally Paraguay until a puncture on Friday’s penultimate test dropped him to second. McKlein/Getty Images

Rovanpera inherited first place in his Toyota GR Yaris Rally1, but made no attempt to hide his struggles on the South American nation’s red clay and gravel roads. The two-time WRC champ ended the leg 7.1s clear of Fourmaux, despite admitting his performance fell well short of his own expectations.

“We should be a bit faster, and we haven't been the fastest guys today,” said the 24-year-old Finn. “Position-wise, of course it's good, but I cannot say we are really happy about the performance.”

Paraguay’s stages took many by surprise, with savage, switch-back compressions and constantly changing grip catching crews completely off guard. The punishment was so severe that Rovanpera joked he could “hear his back cracking” on the landings.

Ott Tanak sat third overnight, just 0.5s behind Hyundai teammate Fourmaux. Behind him, Sebastien Ogier provided the day's most remarkable storyline, fighting back from disaster to claim fourth overall in his GR Yaris. The eight-time WRC champ lost more than 30 seconds to a puncture on the morning’s second stage, but then posted three fastest times in an inspired recovery drive that keeps his hopes of a record-equaling ninth title alive.

“After the misfortune of this morning, for sure we can be happy with the rest of the day,” said Ogier after his fightback.

Current championship leader Elfyn Evans began the rally with a three-point lead over Toyota teammate Rovanpera, but ended the day 21.1s back from the rally leader after suggesting he'd "forgotten how to drive in these conditions.”

Reigning WRC champion Thierry Neuville struggled in sixth overall, admitting he was "fighting hard," but unable to find pace or comfort after an overshoot and a spin in his Hyundai. He headed M-Sport Ford Puma Rally1 rookie Josh McErlean in an impressive seventh, while Sami Pajari dropped to eighth after stopping to change a wheel on his GR Yaris in the penultimate stage.

Rally1 rookie Josh McErlean is upholding M-Sport Ford honor with seventh in his Puma. Jaanus Ree/Red Bull Content Pool

Takamoto Katsuta was forced to retire his GR Yaris after running wide and losing a rear wheel, while Gregoire Munster languished almost 50 minutes back from the lead after going off the road on the opening stage in his Puma Rally1.

In WRC2, the second tier of international rallying, Yohan Rossel leads the class in his PH Sport Citroen C3 on what could prove a critical day in the championship battle.

In the early going, Oliver Solberg had held second in his Printsport Toyota GR Yaris Rally2, behind local hero Diego Dominguez’s similar machine, but lost over a minute to a puncture, dropping him to sixth in class.

Gus Greensmith had been fighting for the podium places, but retired after the morning loop of stages when the rear axle on his Skoda Fabia RS gave up, likely a delayed reaction to a major impact on the day’s opening stage.

The fourth title contender, Nikolay Gryazin, is second in the overnight WRC2 standings, 9.1s behind Rossel, with Dominguez now down to third.

Yohan Rossel holds the WRC2 lead in his Citroen C3 – a result that could prove crucial in the title battle if he maintains it. Jaanus Ree/Red Bull Content Pool

Rally Paraguay continues on Saturday with seven stages totaling 70.1 competitive miles. And continuing the WRC’s journey into the unknown, the character of the stages will be very different to Friday’s opening leg, with the drivers unsure of grip levels and, crucially, how it will change for the second pas through.

WRC Rally Paraguay, positions after Friday/Leg One, SS8
1 Kalle Rovanpera/Jonne Halttunen (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) 1h16m13.3s
2 Adrien Fourmaux/Alexandre Coria (Hyundai i20 N Rally1) +7.1s
3 Ott Tanak/Martin Jarveoja (Hyundai i20 N Rally1) +7.6s
4 Sebastien Ogier/Vincent Landais (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) +17.8s
5 Elfyn Evans/Scott Martin (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) +21.1s
6 Thierry Neuville/Martijn Wydaeghe (Hyundai i20 N Rally1) +25.7s
7 Josh McErlean/Eoin Treacy (Ford Puma Rally1) +1m18.4s
8 Sami Pajari/Marko Salminen (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) +2m24.2s

9 Yohan Rossel/Arnaud Dunand (Citroen C3 – WRC2 leader) +2m57.6s
10 Nikolay Gryazin/Konstantin Aleksandrov (Skoda Fabia RS – WRC2) +3m06.7s

• Watch the rally-closing, bonus points-paying Wolf Power Stage action from Rally Paraguay on the RACER+ App and RACER Network on Sunday, Aug. 31, noon-1:30pm ET, with same-day re-airs on the RACER Network at 8:30pm ET and 10:30pm ET.
• Plus, for a deeper dive into the FIA World Rally Championship, check out the WRC Magazine Show on RACER Network. Catch the latest episode on Sunday, Aug. 31 at 8:00pm ET and 10:00pm ET. 

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