Scary moment for Mikkelsen

Andreas Mikkelsen says he is lucky to still be in contention for a top five finish on Sata Rallye Açores following his moment on stage 14 when he encountered several cows standing in the road.

The M-Sport Ford Fiesta S2000 driver, who claimed his maiden Intercontinental Rally Challenge stage win on Thursday evening, was approximately two kilometres into the Graminhais stage when the incident occurred.

He said: “We were flat-out in sixth gear on a long straight. Over a big crest, 50 metres after the crest there was eight or 10 cows in the middle of the road and we just had to put the car into the ditch where we hit two of the cows and on the road again. It was a scary moment.”

Mikkelsen’s car suffered extensive damage to the cooling package and bodywork but the Norwegian insisted there were no problems with the car mechanically.