Ott Tänak leads WRC Acropolis Rally Greece by 43.6 seconds over Sébastien Ogier after Saturday’s action. It means the Hyundai WRC team is just under 100 competitive kilometres away from securing its first WRC rally win of the 2025 season.
The Estonian began the day with a slender 3.0sec advantage but blew the field apart in searing central Greek heat, claiming five stage wins out of six to establish a 43.6sec buffer over Sébastien Ogier heading into Sunday’s four-stage finale.
With temperatures rising and roads rapidly deteriorating, Tänak kept it tidy aboard his i20 N Rally1 while others hit trouble. He’s now perfectly placed to take his first win since Central European Rally last October – and is poised to climb to second in the championship depending on how Sunday unfolds.
“It’s great for us,” Tänak said. “The stages have been really demanding. The road position helped a lot and the car was working really well.”
Behind him, Ogier focused on consistency rather than chasing stage wins. The Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 driver edged Tänak by just 0.1sec in SS10 – the only stage Tänak didn’t top – but chose not to take unnecessary risks elsewhere. “It would be nice to push,” he admitted, “but the key here is staying out of trouble.”
Fourmaux drops a minute
Trouble is exactly what befell Adrien Fourmaux. The Frenchman had held second until an impact with a rock in SS10 damaged the rear suspension of his i20 N Rally1. He dropped over a minute and later reached the end of SS11 with a tyre off the rim. Despite the drama, he clung on to third overnight, 1min 24.4sec adrift of Tänak.
Elfyn Evans remained a distant fourth after a steady but unspectacular day. The Toyota man repeatedly described the conditions as “very rough” and ended the leg over three minutes off the lead – but with championship rival Thierry Neuville behind, Sunday’s bonus-point opportunities remain critical.
Further back, the Acropolis continued to punish. Kalle Rovanperä was running mid-pack before losing his brakes and going off in SS11, while Takamoto Katsuta also went off and became beached in the same test. Both Toyota drivers retired for the day.
It was another bruising leg for Neuville. After losing time to a puncture in the morning, the Hyundai man fought back into fifth overall – though still over a minute behind Evans.
“We had the pace,” Neuville reflected. “But three punctures [this weekend] didn’t allow us to do what we can.”
Munster retires after final stage
Grégoire Munster completed the leg sixth despite nursing a faulty handbrake throughout the day. Although he reached the finish of the final stage, the M-Sport driver officially retired between the ‘Technical Zone’ and the (Flexi) Service.
“Due to a technical issue detected during this evening’s service, we won’t be able to start tomorrow morning. It’s a tough one to swallow, but we’ll bounce back stronger in three weeks,” the M-Sport driver said on social-media.
It is unclear whether the technical issues are related to the handbrake problems experienced during the day. As he himself indicated, Munster will not restart tomorrow.
Oliver Solberg continued to lead WRC2 in sixth overall with a comfortable buffer over Gus Greensmith, Kajetan Kajetanowicz and Yohan Rossel.
Josh McErlean dropped to 13th after nursing a broken rear driveshaft through two morning stages and completing the afternoon with no handbrake.
Sunday features four more gruelling tests, including the iconic 23.37km Tarzan Wolf Power Stage – where crucial bonus points will be on the line.
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WRC Acropolis Rally Greece 2025 – O/A Classification after SS13 (End of Saturday)
| # | Drivers | Car | Time / Diff to 1st |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Tänak / Järveoja | Hyundai i20 N Rally1 | 2:56:31.7 |
| 2. | Ogier / Landais | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 | +43.6 |
| 3. | Fourmaux / Coria | Hyundai i20 N Rally1 | +2:08.0 |
| 4. | Evans / Martin | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 | +3:04.4 |
| 5. | Neuville / Wydaeghe | Hyundai i20 N Rally1 | +4:17.7 |
| 6. | Solberg / Edmondson | Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 | +6:56.7 |
| 7. | Greensmith / Andersson | Skoda Fabia RS Rally2 | +8:34.5 |
| 8. | Kajetanowicz / Szczepaniak | Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 | +8:44.5 |
| 9. | Y. Rossel / Dunand | Citroën C3 Rally2 | +8:59.6 |
| 10. | Cachón / Rozada | Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 | +10:03.4 |
Content, photo: Red Bull Content Pool
