Bryan Bouffier has maintained the 2014 WRC Monte Carlo Rally lead after three afternoon special stages mostly dominated by Volkswagen and the 2013 champion Sebastien Ogier.
The Frenchman was only sixth quickest on the second loop’s opening stage (SS4), he fought back in the remaining two stages to move his way up from seventh to fourth overall in the standings.
Bouffier was consistently amongst the frontrunners this afternoon and holds a 39-second lead over Citroen’s Kris Meeke who held on to second place overall ahead of Robert Kubica who’s just 0.7 seconds behind in third.
After winning the fourth special stage and setting the second fastest times in both SS5 and SS6, Jari-Matti Latvala improved from 18th to seventh overall. He’s now more than 2 minutes off the lead.
Hyundai’s return to the World Rally Championship wasn’t up the expectations as Dani Sordo retired due to mechanical issues on his i20 WRC following Thierry Neuville’s crash earlier this morning.
Overall standings after SS6:
