Hayden Paddon's massive lead at Rally Paraguay evaporated in an instant. The Hyundai driver lost the top spot after suffering a puncture on SS6, Friday (Aug 30, 2024). He had been leading by more than 20 seconds.
Fortunately for Paddon, the puncture came towards the end of the stage. He lost 25 seconds, enough to hand the lead to Elfyn Evans of Toyota. However, the gap between them is just 0.5 seconds, setting up a thrilling battle for the rest of the weekend.
"A puncture, but I have no idea where it came from. We didn't hit anything, but there were plenty of rocks that could have caused it. We tried to take it easy towards the end," Paddon said. Meanwhile, Adrien Fourmaux continued his impressive form on the afternoon loop, claiming his third consecutive stage win.
Evans and Sami Pajari set identical times, finishing 2.4 seconds behind Fourmaux. Pajari admitted he enjoyed the stage. "No drama. Maybe the first stage I've been able to enjoy. We're trying to manage the conditions and the situation. I'm not pushing flat out in silly places," he said.
Ford's Josh McErlean, who had been third overall, finished 7.4 seconds off the pace, allowing Pajari to move up to third. Oliver Solberg, meanwhile, was just 0.8 seconds behind his teammate, showing Toyota's consistency, though he remains far from the leaders.
"I just tried to drive as I have all day. There's still a long way to go," Solberg reminded. Two more stages remain on Friday at Rally Paraguay, with the rally concluding on Sunday. With such a slim margin at the top, anything can happen.
The standings show Evans leading with 1:27:27.2, followed by Paddon +0.5, Pajari +8.9, McErlean +9.8, and Fourmaux +1:11.4. The tight competition is sure to continue into the weekend.
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