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The Frenchman has won a record fifth Sardinia rally, closing WRC title gap to Elfyn Evans as championship battle intensifies.
Sébastien Ogier has become the most successful driver in the history of Rally Italy Sardinia after securing a dramatic victory by just 7.9 seconds over rival Ott Tänak.
The Frenchman’s triumph not only marked his third win of the 2025 season but also made him the all-time leader in wins at the Sardinian round with five to his name.
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10:24 - 08.06.2025
Sebastien Ogier Eyes Victory With Memory of Sardinian Pain Still Fresh
Sébastien Ogier leads a dramatic Rally Italia Sardegna as rivals falter, setting the stage for a tense final showdown.
Ogier and Tänak reprised their fierce duel from Portugal three weeks earlier, engaging in a rally-long tussle that kept fans on edge.
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Tänak’s hopes were dented by a damaged tire on Saturday, but the Estonian kept the pressure up, pushing Ogier to the limit until the final stage.
“Not an ideal finish, but it was enough to win!” Ogier smiled, after surviving a heart-stopping half-spin on the powerstage that saw him lose 9.3 seconds to Tänak as per DirtFish.
The mistake slashed his lead from 17.2s to a slender 7.9s, but it was still enough to seal a landmark win.
Ogier tightens title chase as Evans leads
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The result has catapulted Ogier into second place in the drivers’ standings, just 19 points behind leader Elfyn Evans, who finished fourth.
Evans endured a puncture early in the rally and struggled to match the frontrunners, eventually finishing four minutes behind his Toyota teammate.
Kalle Rovanperä completed the podium, enjoying a relatively lonely run in third place, far adrift of the leading pair but comfortably ahead of the rest.
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16:32 - 15.02.2025
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Despite being out of the title fight this season, the Finn showed his class by sweeping both Super Sunday and the powerstage thanks to a stunning final stage performance.
Reigning champion Thierry Neuville endured a nightmare weekend, leaving Sardinia with just five points after crashing out on Friday while leading. The result sees him fall 50 points behind Evans, dealing a heavy blow to his title defence.
M-Sport’s disaster and WRC2 chaos
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Further down the order, chaos reigned for several top names. M-Sport Ford’s weekend went from bad to worse as all three of its Puma Rally1s retired on SS2.
Grégoire Munster broke his suspension, Josh McErlean ripped off the rear-left corner of his car, and Mārtiņš Sesks suffered a high-speed crash in fifth gear, ending his rally after just one completed stage.
Hyundai’s Adrien Fourmaux also endured a torrid event, puncturing on Saturday and then flipping his car onto its roof in the afternoon. Teammate Neuville, as the highest-profile casualty, watched his championship chances slip further away.
In WRC2, the drama was no less intense. Championship leader Yohan Rossel retired on Saturday after breaking a steering arm, and rally leader Emil Lindholm crashed out on Sunday morning.
That opened the door for Lauri Joona, but a late puncture cruelly dropped him to sixth place.
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21:51 - 07.06.2025
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Abud Omar and William Lenkupae shone brightest in a defensively solid but goalless outing for Harambee Stars against Chad.
Instead, 24-year-old Italian Roberto Daprà delighted home fans by clinching his maiden WRC2 victory – and his first podium – by just 5.8 seconds over Kajetan Kajetanowicz. Martin Prokop completed the podium.
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