The first two special stages of the second stage of Rally Mexico immediately presented an important change in the general classification, a twist that had Esapekka Lappi as protagonist.
The Finn, who finished the first stage in front of everyone yesterday, made a mistake in the middle of SS11, the 14.82 kilometer Ibarrilla 1, and was forced to retire, thus handing over the leadership of the event to Sébastien Ogier.
Lappi lost control of the rear of his Hyundai i20 N Rally1 and ended up hitting an embankment with the front. In the carom, the Korean car number 4 also hit a light pole, knocking it down. This fell right on the rear of the i20, literally opening it in 2.
Fortunately both Lappi and his navigator Janne Ferm did not suffer any physical damage. A bitter disappointment for the ex Toyota crew, especially after the great day spent yesterday dueling with Ogier.
Now the 8-times world champion is first solo, with a margin of more than 26 seconds over the first of his rivals, his teammate Elfyn Evans.
Ogier also indulged in the whim of winning SS11, while SS12, the 22.56 km El Mosquito 1, ended up in the hands of Thierry Neuville. For the Belgian it is the first scratch of the weekend, with which he continues to keep himself about ten seconds away from Elfyn Evans.
Lappi’s retirement also brought Neuville into the podium zone, even though Hyundai would certainly have preferred to continue occupying the first position with the Toyotas behind them. Now the Japanese team has a precious one-two in hand.
The difficulties of Kalle Rovanpera continue, now half a minute behind the lowest step of the podium. The Finn no longer opens the practice, but his pace is less effective than one might expect today.
