SS5: Wilks and Turán out

ŠKODA Motorsport´s Jan Kopecký moved up to second place overall in the Canon Mecsek Rallye with a win on SS5, while Peugeot UK driver Guy Wilks and local favourite Frigyes Turán failed to finish the stage.

Kopecký came through in 8m47.6s, 13.2s quicker than his pass through the same stage this morning. "It was better this time around, we changed the set-up a little bit," he said. "It was a very fast stage."

Mikkelsen was second fastest, 0.8s down on Kopecký, though he believed he lost time as a result of being among the first to arrive at the scene of Wilks’s stranded car: "I saw Guy [Wilks] by the side of the road. He’s okay but there were spectators in the road as I was coming up to where his car was, so I had to slow down and maybe lost a couple of seconds."

Reports from the stage indicate that Wilks suffered an engine failure caused by a water leak, while Turán crashed 400m from the flying finish but both he and co-driver Gábor Zsiros are reportedly uninjured.

Neuville was third quickest, but it was not enough to hold on to second place overall: "We did a change on the set-up and the car feels much better than before, much stiffer and it’s steering better. That was really good."

Freddy Loix, having matched Kopecký almost stroke for stroke during the morning, was baffled to finish fourth and 8.0s adrift. "I don’t know what to say," he said. "I was driving very well, then at the end the time just disappeared."

Peugeot France’s Bryan Bouffier improved on his time from this morning by nearly seven seconds, and the retirements ahead of him elevated his position to fifth overall. "The car is set-up stiffer now," he said, "we just have to improve."

The organisers confirmed that for safety reasons SS8, the final stage of the day, has been cancelled.