Monte Carlo, SS7-8 : Ogier spins but keeps the lead, Tänak closes

Sébastien Ogier almost suffered and ending-rally moment in the SS7. He spun his Ford Fiesta into a ditch on today’s penultimate speed test and watched his lead of almost 40sec dwindle as fans manhandled it back onto rain-soaked mountain roads in the French Alps.

The incident followed a previous spin on an icy bend during a crazy opening night of the four-day event yesterday, but the Frenchman still led this opening round of the FIA World Rally Championship by 14.9sec from Ott Tänak.

“It was a difficult day but we’re here and still leading,” said Ogier. “It would have been better without the spin, we would have been a minute ahead. Tomorrow must be better.”

Tänak climbed from an overnight fifth but lacked the confidence to push hard in the heavy rain on his Toyota Gazoo Racing debut. Driving a Yaris, the Estonian won two of the day’s six speed tests and was one of three drivers to take on the mantle of Ogier’s closest pursuer.

Andreas Mikkelsen, second overnight, conceded the position after overshooting a junction in the opening stage before retiring on the following liaison section with a broken alternator in his Hyundai i20.

Team-mate Dani Sordo moved up but fell back to third after a mix-up in tyre selection and a misted windscreen delayed the Spaniard. He ended 59.7sec behind Tänak.

Toyota’s Finns, Esapekka Lappi and Jari-Matti Latvala, were fourth and fifth to complete an impressive showing by the Japanese manufacturer. Lappi trailed Sordo by 10.2sec and was just 0.2sec ahead of his colleague, who struggled with understeer this morning.

Kris Meeke was a lonely sixth, the Northern Ireland driver 1min 35.4sec further back in his Citroën C3 and admitting he needed those ahead to hit problems to give him any chance of climbing higher.

Bryan Bouffier was seventh ahead of fellow M-Sport Ford driver Elfyn Evans, who won two stages as he recovered from a time-consuming puncture last night.

Thierry Neuville, who dropped more than four minutes yesterday after sliding into a snow bank, climbed to ninth his i20. The Belgian has set himself the target of a top-six finish.

Craig Breen was a deflated 10th, the Irishman losing more than three minutes this morning with a brake problem in his C3.

Tomorrow drivers face two identical loops of two stages north of Gap before a repeat of last night’s Bayons - Breziers test. After 117.55km of action, they make the long journey south to Monaco ahead of Sunday’s finale in the mountains above the Principality.