Adrien Fourmaux Loses Rally Lead After SS4 Puncture

Adrien Fourmaux lost the Acropolis Rally Greece lead after suffering a puncture on SS4 Stiri, the longest stage of Friday before the midday service break.

The stage again underlined the severe nature of Greece's gravel roads, with sharp rocks, low grip and tyre degradation becoming the key performance factors. Sebastien Ogier set the fastest time and ended Hyundai's early run of stage wins, although he felt the result owed heavily to luck.

Elfyn Evans endured another difficult morning as the first car on the road, while Takamoto Katsuta suffered severe right-rear tread damage that remained intact to the finish. The situation showed that tyre management was limiting performance as much as outright pace.

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Fourmaux said the tyre wear had been acceptable before the failure occurred. With rocks spread across the road, the risk of punctures remained high even when drivers reduced their pace and tried to choose safer lines.

"The tyre wear was acceptable, but then the tyre just failed. I took it easy at the beginning, but there are so many rocks that it can happen anywhere. That's rallying," said Fourmaux.

Thierry Neuville inherited the rally lead after Fourmaux's setback, while Jon Armstrong again impressed for M-Sport Ford by making use of a stronger road position. After SS4, the focus shifts to the next Friday loop, where tyre survival and avoiding rocks are set to remain decisive before the rally moves into Saturday's leg.