Sébastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia managed to throw the FIA World Rally Championship title race wide open again after claiming a priceless maiden victory in Rally Turkey on Sunday.
Needing to secure maximum points to realistically continue his challenge for a seventh successive world title, the Citroën driver benefited from the electrical misfortune that plagued series leader Ott Tänak and an accident that cost Thierry Neuville valuable minutes on Saturday.
By picking up an additional three bonus points on the final Power Stage, Ogier now heads to the remaining three rounds of this year’s championship 17 points behind the leading Estonian after starting the weekend 40 adrift.
Esapekka Lappi took the fight to his triumphant team-mate from the opening gravel stage. The Finn led from stages three to 11, secured three stage wins and, despite an overshoot and a spin, delivered an impressive performance to give the French manufacturer a first one-two finish since Kris Meeke and Mads Østberg prevailed in Argentina in 2015 with a pair of DS3 WRCs.
The 34.7-second win was a 47th career WRC success for Ogier and a first since Mexico in early March this year.
The final morning developed into a procession with the three title contenders conserving their tyres for a final Power Stage push.
Hyundai’s Andreas Mikkelsen delivered vital points for the Korean manufacturer with third overall. The Norwegian claimed three stage wins in his i20 and was easily the class of the rest of the field behind the Citroën duo.
M-Sport Ford World Rally Team’s Teemu Suninen’s challenge for the podium fizzled out on the final morning, but the Finn was able to deliver fourth place in Turkey for a second successive year.
Fifth overall for Spaniard Dani Sordo handed Hyundai crucial points for the Manufacturers’ Championship and enabled the team to move 19 clear of the Toyota Team. The Toyotas of both Jari-Matti Latvala and Kris Meeke reached the finish in sixth and seventh overall. Latvala recorded three stage wins and Meeke one.
Thierry Neuville conserved his tyres on the final morning to challenge for the Power Stage win and the Belgian collected four bonus points to add to his eighth overall, an accident on Saturday morning potentially wrecking his title dream for another season.
M-Sport Ford’s Pontus Tidemand delivered a measured drive to ninth place in the second of the works Fords and WRC leader Ott Tänak was last of the factory team drivers after his electrical woes on Saturday. The Estonian opted to take no spare wheel in his Yaris for a flat out push on the Power Stage and he at least salvaged a maximum five bonus points from a train-wreck of a weekend as far as his title aspirations were concerned.
2019 Rally Turkey – Final Unofficial Results:
- Sébastien Ogier (FRA) / Julien Ingrassia (FRA) Citroën C3 WRC 3hr 50min 12.1sec
- Esapekka Lappi (FIN) / Janne Ferm (FIN) Citroën C3 WRC 3hr 50min 46.8sec
- Andreas Mikkelsen (NOR) / Anders Jaeger-Amland (NOR) Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC 3hr 51min 16.6sec
- Teemu Suninen (FIN) / Marko Salminen (FIN) Ford Fiesta WRC 3hr 51min 47.2sec
- Dani Sordo (SPA) / Carlos Del Barrio (SPA) Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC 3hr 52min 38.0sec
- Jari-Matti Latvala (FIN) / Mikka Anttila Toyota Yaris WRC 3hr 53min 11.2sec
- Kris Meeke (GBR) / Sebastian Marshall (GBR) Toyota Yaris WRC 3hr 54min 05.4sec
- Thierry Neuville (BEL) / Nicolas Gilsoul (BEL) Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC 3hr 55min 46.9sec
- Pontus Tidemand (SWE) / Ola Floene (NOR) Ford Fiesta WRC 3hr 57min 35.0sec
- Gus Greensmith (GBR) / Elliott Edmondson (GBR) Ford Fiesta R5 MkII 4hr 05min 30.8sec