From day one, the ECO Rally Acropolis 2022 showed its true character. The younger, inexperienced drivers understood why it is considered one of the most challenging races in the championship.

The crews covered a total of 441km, including 108.31km of racing, without visiting the EKO Service Park at the Panhellenic Exhibition of Lamia. Proper tire selection and handling combined with car protection and of course the starting order were the elements that shaped the standings at the end of the day.

Extensive experience and a favorable starting order brought Sebastian Leb to the top of the overall standings. The 48-year-old Frenchman and 9-time WRC Champion drove the M-Sport Ford Puma Rally1 to the limit, weighing a small error in the ED Daphne” which temporarily dropped him from above and returned to close the leg, sharing his knowledge of “ED Bauxite”.

The great French rider won four of Friday’s six stages and in the end managed to overcome the big surprise of today’s race, which was none other than his compatriot and stablemate Pierre Louis Loubet. Somehow, Malcolm Wilson’s team found themselves at the evening service after getting the “1-2” in the leg.

25-year-old Loubet, son of the great Yves Loubet, made the most of the starting order that favored him with a very fast pace. It was not for nothing that he set the best time on a special stage for the first time in his career, and it was also the first time that he was temporarily in the lead in a WRC race.

Just 7 seconds behind the young Frenchman and 8.7 inches from the lead is Esapeka Lapi, continuing his winning streak for Toyota Gazoo Racing.

Close behind is Thierry Neville in the Hyundai i20 N Rally1, who was at a disadvantage to all of the above due to the grid order and he should certainly be happy with his result today.

Something that is not true in the case of Dani Sordo. The Spaniard initially lacked confidence at the wheel of the i20 N Rally1 but with minor changes to the chassis setup towards the end of the day he managed to improve his performance and stay ahead of Ott Tanak who ended up fighting for the win as many places as he could .

The Estonian Hyundai driver had a problem with his car’s hybrid system and suffered a slight performance deficit. At the same time, like leaders Kale Rovanpera, they had the biggest disadvantage compared to the rest, opening and “clearing” the road.

A similar problem faced Elfin Evans Evans in the Toyota Yaris Rally1, while a flat tire ruined Craig Breen’s Ford Puma Rally1 race.

WRC2

In the WRC 2 category, Emil Lindholm leads in the Skoda Fabia Rally2 evo. The 26-year-old Finn, son of ex-Peugeot works driver Sebastien Lindholm, set best times in the class and took the lead over his pursuers with a clear lead.

The fight for second place is between Nikolai Greizin and Timu Suninen with Skoda Fabia Rally2 and Hyundai i20 N Rally2 respectively, with the young Russian leading by just 5.6 inches. Andreas Milelsen also set excellent times in his Skoda Fabia Evo Rally2.

Due to the exit and temporary renunciation of the OAKA super special, however, it is used very well and is far behind in the ranking.

The Greeks

On the Greek side, Lambros Athanassoulas with Nikos Zakkhaios in the Hyundai i20 N Rally2 got off to a quick start but then tried not to get carried away and finished 8th in class.

Alexandros Tsouloftas with Ross Whittock in the Volkswagen Polo GTi follows a breath away, just 2.2” behind, with the battle between them set to be highly interesting. Giorgos Kehagias-Dimitris Sainis with Skoda Fabia Rally2 is third in the informal Greek standings with two laps.

Behind them are Chrysostomos Karellis-Leonidas Macheiras with a Citroen C3 Rally2 and Vassilis and Yiannis Velanis with another Skoda Fabia Rally2 evo.

Junior WRC

The battle for the title in the JWRC, which will be decided at the EKO Rally Acropolis, took an exciting turn from day one of racing after Sami Pazari, who had arrived in Greece as championship leader, was pulled out of the race with flat tyres. The Estonian Robert Virves is in the lead with a clear difference to the British John Armstrong! Lauri Yuna suffered a similar fate to Pazari due to a mechanical problem, with Irishman William Creighton third.

Although tomorrow only has three repetitive special stages, it is the longest and most difficult of the race at 148 kilometers of racing. Given that only 30 inches separate the first and sixth, it’s reasonable to understand that everything can change within a few feet.

The statements of the protagonists from the service park in Lamia:

#69 Kale Rovanpera-Jone Haltunen (Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT)

“The starting order, but also the fact that I didn’t feel very comfortable in the car, are the two main reasons for our performance today. I tried to drive clear and fast. In some stages we weren’t quick enough, so I lost confidence. I’m not 100% happy with the grip of the car and with this grid it’s not the best combination either. We will try to improve the car and I hope that with the best starting order we can match the pace of the first.”

#8 Ot Tanak – Martin Jarveoja (Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT)

“The problem with the hybrid unit really bothered us. Otherwise we did our best. And tomorrow the starting order will be very important. Tomorrow has the most race kilometers and the stages are longer. At the same time, more cars will start in front of us, which means we will have better traction.”

#11 Thierry Neville – Martin Vidage (Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT)

“Except for too much dust in the 1st ED, it was a good day for us. We were consistent in performance and are just 7.3 seconds. away from above. Tomorrow is a big day in terms of duration and kilometers and it is certain that we will try to push and improve our position. The first two specials were similar to previous years, while the new specials had distinctive features. In some special situations, the conditions were different than reconnaissance, which added to the difficulty.”

#33 Elfin Evans-Scott Martin (Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT)

“It wasn’t a very good day for us. When you start at the top the conditions are difficult. Overall I’m disappointed with today’s result and I’m sure it will be tough tomorrow too. It’s a big day and we’ll have a chance to try to move up the rankings.”

#18 Takamoto Katsuta – Aaron Johnston (Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT New Generation)

“I struggled a lot today. I couldn’t feel safe behind the wheel of the car and my driving wasn’t good either. Tomorrow is a new day and I’ll try to find what I missed today. Conditions are getting more difficult I have to find the right pace for that.”

#42 Craig Breen – Paul Nagle (M Sport Ford WRT)

“The car is very good. Of course I’m disappointed with the branching. I don’t know how many games in a row we’ve had incidents like this. But unfortunately that’s the reality.”

#4 Esapeka Lapi – Yane Ferm (Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT)

“I think tomorrow we will have a little more difficult task because the rest knows last year’s specials. Certainly the rest of the race is faster and definitely more demanding.”

#19 Sebastian Lebb – Isabelle Galmis (M-Sport Ford WRT)

“The feeling at OAKA was unique. I wanted to get out of the car but didn’t know if it was allowed. So many people came to see us and I wanted to thank them. It was an amazing atmosphere and I certainly didn’t expect so many people to come and see the WRC up close. It was wonderful. Today I tried to push. We had good conditions ahead of us, and I wanted to use that to have the best possible position tomorrow. Special stages are new to me but I’ll try to do my best.”

#6 Dani Sordo – Cadito Carrera (Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT)

“Today was a difficult day for me. I couldn’t find a fast pace, which improved a bit towards the end. I lost a lot of time at the beginning of the race, but then the situation improved a bit. Tomorrow I have to keep going at the same pace and try to make up places.”

#44 Gus Greensmith – Jonas Anderson (M-Sport Ford WRT)

“It wasn’t a bad day for us. When I drove well and didn’t make any mistakes, I had good speed. But we did two four-a-kes in two slow spots in the early stages. Of course we have to improve some things. Overall, I’m happy with what we achieved today. However, the times between the crews are very tight, which means that many positions can change tomorrow.”

#7 Pierre-Louis Loubet – Vincent Landet (M-Sport Ford WRT)

“Tomorrow we will try to continue at the same pace. I don’t know what to expect because it’s going to be a very difficult day, but I think if we stay focused we can keep the same pace.”

#9 Iordanis Serderidis – Frederic Miklot (M-Sport Ford WRT)

“Today we had several problems. In the middle of the day we had a broken shock absorber and ended the stage with it. Driving was a real nightmare. We also had a problem with the throttle body. In addition, the hybrid system did not work in some specials. That’s a lot for one day. But we’re still here, and that’s a good thing. Tomorrow we will be first in the specials and it will be very difficult, especially in the morning. This Acropolis is tougher than I expected.”