SS13: Mikkelsen leads despite scare

He struck a rock three kilometres from the finish

By Franck Drui

9 October 2011 - 15:50
SS13: Mikkelsen leads despite scare

RACMSA Rally of Scotland leader Andreas Mikkelsen reported a major scare when he struck a rock three kilometres from the finish of stage 13, the 25.81-kilometre High Corrie test.

The ŠKODA UK Motorsport driver feared he had damaged his car’s suspension in the incident but it appears that the Norwegian has escaped with just a front-right puncture. As a result he was 6.3s slower than defending Intercontinental Rally Challenge champion Juho Hänninen through the stage. His overall advantage ahead of the Finn is 30.4s with two runs remaining.

Bryan Bouffier completed the stage with the second fastest time after he and co-driver Xavier Panseri managed to repair the faulty brakes that held them back through stage 12. However, they picked up a 10-second penalty for starting the stage late.

Alastair Fisher continued his impressive recovery from the broken driveshaft he suffered on Saturday morning to go third fastest in his M-Sport Ford Fiesta S2000. Fisher is the leading British driver in eighth overall, one place ahead of Peugeot UK’s Guy Wilks.

Jarkko Nikara’s bid to win the IRC Production is over after he spun into a ditch and got stuck. His misfortune promotes Subaru Impreza driver Toshi Arai into the category lead.

Thierry Neuville completed the stage with a front-right puncture, which he picked up one kilometre before the end of the run. However, he is now just 3.4s behind sixth-placed Toni Gardemeister.

Pos.TeamCarTime
1 Mikkelsen Andreas / Floene Ola Škoda Fabia S2000 1h51m12.4s
2 Hänninen Juho / Markkula Mikko Škoda Fabia S2000 +30.4s
3 Bouffier Bryan / Panseri Xavier Peugeot 207 S2000 +1m34.4s
4 Breen Craig / Roberts Gareth Ford Fiesta S2000 +2m00.5s
5 Kopecký Jan / Starý Petr Škoda Fabia S2000 +2m13.5s
6 Gardemeister Toni / Suominen Tapio Škoda Fabia S2000 +3m14.7s
7 Neuville Thierry / Gilsoul Nicolas Peugeot 207 S2000 +3m18.1s
8 Fisher Alastair / Barritt Daniel Ford Fiesta S2000 +5m02.9s
9 Wilks Guy / Pugh Phil Peugeot 207 S2000 +6m54.3s
10 Arai Toshihiro / Moscatt Dale Subaru Impreza R4 +8m14.6s
11 Kahle Matthias / Göbel Peter Škoda Fabia S2000 +9m25.7s
12 Greer Jonathan / Roberts Dai Škoda Fabia S2000 +10m40.1s
13 Pritchard Jason / Furniss Dale Subaru Impreza STI +11m07.1s
14 Kruuda Karl / Järveoja M. Škoda Fabia S2000 +14m57.3s
15 Kangur Martin / Kutt Silver Honda Civic Type R3 +15m52.4s

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