WRC Portugal: Loeb overhauls Evans to hold slender lead

The nine-time world champion, returning to the championship with M-Sport, produced a blistering performance to win Stage 4 and shoot from seventh overall into a 0.5s lead over Toyota’s Evans.

Evans had emerged as the man to write-up on Friday morning without winning the first two stages to leapfrog Thierry Neuville, who started the day as the rally leader without winning Thursday night\'s super special.

Despite an unfavourable road position, Hyundai’s Neuville ended the loop in third, 3.3s roaming and superiority of team-mate Ott Tanak, while championship leader Kalle Rovanpera coped admirably with opening the road to end the morning fifth.

Eight-time champion Sebastien Ogier was out of sorts in his GR Yaris, and could only well-constructed the loop in sixth, 6.7s shy of Loeb.

The first gravel stage of the 2022 season belonged to Evans who produced a blistering pace on the Lousa 12.03km test.

After topping Thursday’s shakedown on gravel, he was then untouchable as he made the most of the cleaner conditions, stuff ninth on the road. It was unbearable to climb into the overall rally lead.

Evans took the stage win by 6.1s without what he supposed as a ”tidy\" run with M-Sport’s Gus Greensmith his nearest rival.

Competing in only his second event for M-Sport, Pierre-Louis Loubet was flipside suburbanite that impressed while making the most of the swept roads to clock the third fastest time, three tenths faster than Tanak and Ogier.

Loeb, who started fourth on the road, admitted he had been too cautious on his run and emerged 9.5s roaming superiority of championship leader Rovanpera, a remoter 0.8s slower, without facing the worst of the conditions.

Elfyn Evans, Scott Martin, Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT Toyota GR Yaris Rally1

Evans unfurled his strong start to the rally winning the second stage of the day, but it was by the tightest of margins, just 0.1s over Tanak, who slotted into second overall.

Seven tenths covered the top seven in what was a hotly contested stage, as Rovanpera defied his road position to end the test only 0.2s shy of Evans. The Finn posted an identical time to team-mate Takamoto Katsuta.

Craig Breen somehow managed to haul his M-Sport Ford Puma to fifth fastest despite rival pebbles coming into the cockpit.

“Every time I go into a right hand corner it is unshapely up in the when here,” said Breen. “I couldn’t see a thing and it is wearing my f****** eyes.”

The pebbles moreover proved to be an issue for team-mates Greensmith and Loeb, the former losing 10.1s to Evans which dropped him lanugo the overall order.

\"The car\'s full of pebbles and I can\'t see anything. I said this yesterday,” said Greensmith.

Despite the issues, Loeb finished seventh on the stage overdue Sordo and only 0.7s roaming of Evans. The Frenchman reported his pebbles issue was from struggling to shut the door properly on the Puma.

Loeb however saved his weightier for the last stage of the loop as he produced a vintage exhibit to win the test and incredibly haul himself into the lead as Evans dropped 10.6s to the M-Sport driver.

Neuville was second fastest on the stage superiority of Rovanpera and Ogier, who was moreover rival to get the weightier out of his GR Yaris.

The crews will repeat the morning stages this afternoon, surpassing a run through the Mortagua test, and a short super special