Erik Cais is thirteenth before the final day. Martin Prokop, with another Fabia, is three places behind him and in the second stage he took care of the best Czech result so far, when he set the tenth time in the eleventh stage overall.
Lappi led by a tenth of a second ahead of Ogier after Friday, and in the first half of the second stage the two rivals battled for first place. The Frenchman went into the afternoon program as the leading driver, but in the 14th test overall he ended up off the track in rain and mud, losing his hopes of a record fifth triumph in Sardinia.
“When I saw Seb, it was clear that the fight was over. It was an easy decision to slow down,” said Lappi, who ended up finishing the lap 27 seconds slower than Neuville. He was the fastest driver of the second stage anyway, winning five of the eight tests, and will go into Sunday’s four-part final with a 36-second lead over Lappi.
Reigning world champion and championship leader Kalle Rovanperä is third as Toyota’s best driver, but he is almost two minutes behind Neuville. He made up almost half of the deficit in the 14th test due to tire problems.
In addition to Ogier, who is third in the World Cup, the defending champion and overall third man of the season, Ott Tänak from Estonia, did not complete the second stage either. Already in today’s second test, the engine of his Ford went out after passing through water, and after the finish line he retired due to a technical fault.
| Rallye Italia, World Rally Championship event in Sardinia – after stage 2: |
|---|
| 1. Neuville, Wydaeghe (Belg./Hyundai i20) 3:10:36,9 |
| 2. Lips, Firm (Fin./Hyundai i20) -36.4 |
| 3. Rovanperä, Halttunen (Fin./Toyota Yaris) -1:50.7 |
| 4. Evans, Martin (Brit./Toyota Yaris) -5:36,5 |
| 5. Sordo, Carrera (Spain/Hyundai i20) -6:27.9 |
| 6. Fourmaux, Coria (Fr./Ford Fiesta) -8:11,7 |
| … |
| 13. CAIS, TEŠÍNSKY -14:29.7 |
| 16. PROKOP ERNST (all Czech Republic/Škoda Fabia RS) -16:51.3. |
