SS10: Panzerplatte spin costs Latvala third place

Jari-Matti Latvala lost third place on Rallye Deutschland after he spun off the road during the 48km Panzerplatte - the longest stage in the World Championship.

Latvala blamed his pace notes for the high-speed spin, which occurred 10km before the finish on a long left-hand corner.

The Finn was lucky to avoid hitting anything as his Ford Focus pirouetted across a grassy area, but he had to reverse several times before he could get back on the road. He dropped to fourth in the overall standings, 8.9sec behind Sebastien Ogier who moved up to third.

Topping the timesheet, Sebastien Loeb took a dominating stage win and more than doubled his rally lead over Dani Sordo to 23 seconds. Petter Solberg was Loeb’s closest rival through SS9, while Sordo set the third fastest time.

Citroen Junior team driver Kimi Raikkonen completed the stage with his car’s rear suspension at less than 100 per cent. A left-hand anti-roll-bar link broke near the end of SS9 and couldn’t be fixed at the pre-stage 15-minute remote service.

Overall standings after SS10: