Mikkelsen still in touch, Neuville out

Juho Hänninen remains in the lead of the RACMSA Rally of Scotland by a narrow margin after a dramatic 29.04km blast around Loch Ard forest. Light drizzle arrived during the stage, which was broadcast live on Eurosport, and two competitors rolled out.

Once again Guy Wilks set the fastest stage time, 18m47.8s, in the Škoda UK Fabia S2000.

"I made a little change to the car," he said. "It felt quite good and we got into a good rhythm but the stage was quite slippery and greasy, so I’m not sure whether the change worked."

Kris Meeke set the second fastest time, 3.2s off Wilks, but reported a suspected technical issue with his Peugeot UK 207.

"Something’s burning underneath – Paul [Nagle] said there’s a lot of heat under his seat," he said. "Maybe there’s a problem with the exhaust. The engine is down a bit on power. I drove as hard as I could, maybe we have something."

Hänninen went third fastest even though he had to pass the ailing Proton of Tom Cave, which was running slowly with a punctured left rear tyre.

"That was a tricky stage but we did okay," said Hänninen. "It was very slippery. I will try to keep the same pace this afternoon and hope it gets a bit drier."

Andreas Mikkelsen, Hänninen’s chief rival for the overall win, was just half a second slower in the M-Sport Fiesta. "The conditions were very difficult," he said. "I was losing a lot of grip over the last 10 kilometres. I was fighting it but we got through okay. Things are looking good. I’m not going to do anything stupid."

Thierry Neuville started the stage in fourth place overall but dropped his rear left wheel over the edge of the road near the end of the stage. The momentum carried him over the side, pitching the Peugeot Belux 207 into a roll.

"It was not such a heavy accident," he said. "I braked maybe one metre too late but then we went over and there were not enough spectators at that point to help us get back on to the road. I’m very sorry for the team but for sure we learned a lot at this rally, so it was quite positive."

Erstwhile Group N leader Euan Thorburn rolled one minute into the stage and although the Evo IX and its occupants escaped unscathed, they were firmly stuck in a ditch. His misfortune promotes Jonathan Greer and David Bogie to fourth and fifth overall.

"I hit a log on the inside of a right hander which might have damaged the steering a bit," said Greer. "There was a small problem with the brakes towards the end there as well. We’re going to have a look in the remote service."

"It wasn’t as enjoyable as it might have been," said Bogie. "The suspension keeps crashing out at the rear and bouncing up, so we’re going to see what we can do about it before the next stage."

Overall positions after SS10:

Stages 10 & 12 Loch Ard

The longest stage in the rally and one of the longest tests in the UK at just over 29 kilometres, this is a monster of a stage. It is here that the rally could very easily be won or lost! The test features all types of terrain from flat out sections over crests, to tight hairpins as you descend back down the hill. Much of the route has been clear felled by the Forestry Commission and the cars can be viewed for long distances through the many twists and turns. Loch Ard Forest is part of the Lomond & Trossachs National Park, Scotland’s first National Park, with the status being granted by the Scottish Government in 2002.

Eurosports TV cameras will be transmitting both runnings of this stage on live TV. The stage has undergone a couple of changes with the addition of a new loop that climbs over the hill at the back of Drymen.

Guy Wilks says: “This is a belter of a stage! The road is built-up at the start, with big ditches either side, and it’s very fast and flowing. With trees set well back, the road is lined with heather, fern and bracken and there are some beautiful sections of road where you just fly. The stage is quite long, there are a lot of surface and road width changes and it feels like there is everything here rolled up into one stage – including a spectacular downhill section with a lot of hairpins. It’s a difficult stage and a real sting in the tail, as David Bogie found out, when he crashed out on the final stage here last year.”