Adrien Fourmaux Leads SS3 as Sordo Hits Trouble

Adrien Fourmaux continued his strong Friday morning at Acropolis Rally Greece by setting the fastest time on the Parnassos stage, moving into the rally lead ahead of his Hyundai team-mate.

Fourmaux said he had been trying to drive smoothly to protect the tyres, but still felt there was very little grip on the Greek gravel. The conditions placed tyre management at the centre of the early Friday battle, with rocks across the road and the surface evolving as more cars completed the stage.

Thierry Neuville completed Hyundai's one-two on the stage, although he continued to report rear-end instability and focused on avoiding stones on the road. Meanwhile, Jon Armstrong delivered a strong result for M-Sport Ford by placing inside the stage top three and strengthening his early rally position.

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Sebastien Ogier remained Toyota's leading driver after choosing a more cautious approach amid the risk of tyre and car damage. Sami Pajari also maintained a competitive rhythm, despite the low-grip conditions making the car difficult to control in several sections.

"I was trying to be very smooth on the tyres to save them, but even with that you feel you have no grip. I'm quite happy, we need to take a look at the tyre wear. It's a massive time difference, that's good," said Fourmaux.

Behind the front runners, Elfyn Evans again struggled as the first car on the road with limited traction, while Dani Sordo had to stop and change a tyre, losing significant time. Acropolis Rally Greece still has several rough gravel stages remaining on Friday, with tyre survival and avoiding rocks set to shape the next phase of the event.