Jari-Mati Latvala has taken the 2013 Rally Germany this morning after disaster struck for Ogier. The Frenchman was leading by 5.4 seconds from Latvala at the end of SS2, before losing 2 minutes and 30 seconds for going off the road on SS3, damaging his Volkswagen Polo R’s front left suspension.
While Ogier’s hopes of securing his first WRC championship title in Germany are now all but over, team-mate Latvala is currently holding on to first place, with just 2.4 seconds separating him from a charging Thierry Neuville on the M-Sport Ford Fiesta.
Dani Sordo meanwhile is leading the Citroens with third place overall, ahead of team-mate Mikko Hirvonen and M-Sport driver Mads Ostberg; the latter is more than a full minute clear of the lead.
Qatari driver Nasser Al-Attiyah is seventh overall, just ten seconds behind Martin Prokop’s Czech Ford.
Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap 1. Jari-Matti Latvala VW 59m12.6s 2. Thierry Neuville M-Sport Ford +2.4s 3. Dani Sordo Citroen +15.1s 4. Mikko Hirvonen Citroen +28.3s 5. Mads Ostberg M-Sport Ford +1m20.3s 6. Martin Prokop Czech Ford +2m45.3s 7. Nasser Al-Attiyah M-Sport Ford +2m55.1s 8. Robert Kubica PH Citroen +3m17.8s* 9. Elfyn Evans M-Sport Ford +3m26.1s* 10. Michal Kosciuszko Lotos Ford +3m42.7s