Tanak beats the heat to head punishing WRC Acropolis Rally Friday

Hyundai’s Ott Tanak (above) emerged from a punishing Friday at Acropolis Rally Greece with a slender lead as soaring temperatures and savage road conditions ripped through the FIA World Rally Championship field.

The Estonian driver survived a day of attrition and scorching heat in his i20 N Rally1 to end the leg with a 3.0s buffer over his teammate Adrien Fourmaux, whose pace and poise have put the Frenchman right in the hunt for a possible first WRC win.

With ambient temperatures pushing past 100°F and cockpit heat even higher, it was one of the roughest, most attritional Acropolis days in recent memory. Reigning WRC champ Thierry Neuville, who briefly led after the morning’s second stage in the third of the factory Hyundais, dropped around three minutes across the remainder of the day with two punctures, while Toyota duo Takamoto Katsuta and Kalle Rovanpera faced similar setbacks.

Tanak, typically unfazed, played the long game with a clean and consistent approach alongside co-driver Martin Jarveoja. While he didn’t win any of the day’s six ultra-rough gravel speed tests, the Estonian’s only real scare was a de-beaded tire toward the end of the final stage of the morning loop and the time loss was minimal.

“It was definitely a very positive day altogether,” said Tanak. “For sure, at times it was difficult to keep everything in one piece, but I think in the end we must be happy that we didn’t have any big trouble with the tires or with the car. We are definitely happy to be here.”

Fourmaux was both rapid and resilient, shrugging off a frustrating delay while stuck in Katsuta’s dust on the morning’s opener to win three stages.

Eight-time WRC champ Sebastien Ogier lay third overnight, 16.9s off the lead in his Toyota GR Yaris Rally1. The Frenchman, fresh off back-to-back wins in Portugal and Sardinia, started strongly and led the rally until the afternoon loop’s opening stage, but earlier damage limited his tire options for the final two tests.

Toyota’s Sebastien Ogier is on a roll and seeking a third consecutive win, but he lost the Acropolis lead in the afternoon loop. Jaanus Ree/Red Bull Content Pool

Behind the top three, championship leader Elfyn Evans held fourth after a long day of road opening and gravel sweeping in his Toyota, while Gregoire Munster sat an impressive fifth with his M-Sport Ford Puma Rally1, the Luxembourger openly playing the long game with a focus on staying clear of trouble.

Takamoto Katsuta was sixth and more than two-and-a-half minutes back from the lead after back-to-back punctures on the opening two stages, with Rovanpera seventh, still in the fight despite stopping to change a wheel on the penultimate stage.

Last year’s Acropolis winner, Neuville, cut a frustrated figure in eighth overall after a day that could – and perhaps should, based on his fastest time through the final stage – have delivered more.

“We were hit twice today,” said the frustrated Belgian. “We pushed, we deserved more, but it’s a lottery sometimes.”

Josh McErlean, who also stopped to change a wheel this morning on his Puma Rally1, sits 12th overall, but M-Sport stablemate Martins Sesks, who’s running a part-time campaign, retired prior to the final stage with a fuel issue, joining Toyota’s Sami Pajari – who was forced out earlier with a fluid leak – on the list of Rally1 casualties. Both are expected to restart on Saturday, albeit well down the order, when Acropolis delivers six more grueling stages totaling 76.7 competitive miles.

M-Sport Ford’s Martins Sesks had worked his way in to the top 10 before a fuel issue ended his day early.

In WRC2, the second tier of international rallying, Oliver Solberg put on a rough-surface masterclass. The Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 driver posted fastest class time in all but the day’s penultimate stage, treading the fine line between outright pace and avoiding the rocks that litter the Greek stages.

The Swede’s pace was enough to put him ninth overall at the end of the leg, 53.4s ahead of Kajetan Kajetanowicz’s similar Toyota in second, with the Skoda Fabia RS of Gus Greensmith completing the top three just 3.0s behind the Pole.

Solberg, who started the rally second in the championship, looks well-placed to snatch the series lead from current points-topper Yohan Rossel, who endured a bruising day in his Citroen C3.

Rossel was among the early casualties, dropping time in the morning’s opening stage with a puncture and later suffering a damaged steering arm. Although he recovered well in the afternoon, the Frenchman sat fifth in class overnight, 2m3.4s off the lead.

Oliver Solberg put on a rough-surface masterclass to lead the WRC2 field by almost a minute in his Toyota GR Yaris Rally2. Jaanus Ree/Red Bull Content Pool

WRC Acropolis Rally Greece, positions after Friday/Leg One, SS7
1 Ott Tanak/Martin Jarveoja (Hyundai i20 N Rally1) 1h25m07.4s 

2 Adrien Fourmaux/Alexandre Coria (Hyundai i20 N Rally1) +3.0s
3 Sebastien Ogier/Vincent Landais (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) +16.9s
4 Elfyn Evans/Scott Martin (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) +1m21.5s
5 Gregoire Munster/Louis Louka (Ford Puma Rally1) +1m43.3s
6 Takamoto Katsuta/Aaron Johnston (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) +2m34.3s
7 Kalle Rovanpera/Jonne Halttunen (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) +2m38.1s
8 Thierry Neuville/Martijn Wydaeghe (Hyundai i20 N Rally1) +2m38.3s 
9 Oliver Solberg/Elliott Edmondson (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 – WRC2 leader) +2m48.4s
10 Kajetan Kajetanowicz/Maciej Szczepaniak (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 – WRC2) +3m41.8s

• Watch the rally-closing, bonus points-paying Wolf Power Stage action from Acropolis Rally Greece LIVE on the RACER+ App and RACER.com on Sunday, June 29 at 6:00-7:30am ET, with same-day airings on the RACER Network at 11:00am and 10:00pm, plus Monday, June 30 at 1:00am ET. 

• Plus, for a deeper dive into the FIA World Rally Championship, check out the WRC Magazine Show on RACER Network. Catch the latest episode on Sunday, June 29 (9:30pm ET) and Monday, June 30 (12:30am ET).  

• And the 2025 WRC action continues on RACER+ and the RACER Network. There’s LIVE Wolf Power Stage coverage from all remaining rallies on the RACER+ App and same-day airings on the RACER Network. You can find out more about the RACER+ App at racerplus.com.