2014 Rally Portugal: Hirvonen leads at the end of Leg 1

Mikko Hirvonen has taken command of Rally Portugal after a consistent drive throughout the first leg on Friday, while many of his rivals faltered. Although the Finn only won one of six special stages today, he leads second place man Ott Takan by 3.7 seconds and VW’s Sebastien Ogier by 6 seconds.

Jari-Matti Latvala’s Rally de Portugal curse struck again when the Finn rolled out of second place midway through SS5.

Robert Kubica’s awful season took another turn for the worse when the Pole crashed his Ford Fiesta RS in the fourth special stage. Kubica was 11km from the finish when he hit a tree while cutting a bend and the impact ripped a front wheel from the car.

Elfyn Evans was another retirement in SS4. The Welshman rolled several times 17km into the stage, his Fiesta RS ending at the bottom of a steep bank.

Overall standings after SS7:

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