French rally great Sebastian Ogier wins Rally of Portugal for a record sixth time
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Sebastien Ogier of France driving his Toyota GR Yaris Rally 1 hybrid during the SS22 power stage of the Rally Portugal on May 12, 2024.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
Toyota's Sebastien Ogier won the Rally of Portugal for a record sixth time on May 12 after beating Hyundai's Ott Tanak by 7.9 seconds.
The Frenchman, an eight-time world champion, previously shared the record with Finnish great Markku Alen.
Hyundai's Thierry Neuville finished third to stretch his world championship lead over Toyota's Elfyn Evans, who was a distant sixth, to 24 points after five rounds.
Ogier, competing only part-time now, had led the rally since May 11 when teammate and reigning champion Kalle Rovanpera rolled off.
The Frenchman had started the final 62.18km, over four stages on the fast gravel roads around Matosinhos and Porto, with an 11.9-second lead over Tanak, who led the Sunday standings and is now third overall in the championship.
"It was not a great weekend for the whole team, but it was a good rally for us and I am glad we could bring some points," said Ogier.
Belgian Neuville, who took five points from the Power Stage, finished a minute and nine seconds behind.
Adrien Fourmaux was fourth for M-Sport Ford, with Hyundai's Dani Sordo fifth.
Hyundai (219 points) took the lead from Toyota (215) in the manufacturers' standings.
The next round of the world championship is in Sardinia from May 30 to June 2. REUTERS
