Fiesta charges on in Wales 29.10.2016: As Wales Rally GB entered the second day of competition, Ott Tänak

As Wales Rally GB entered the second day of competition, Ott Tänak and Raigo Mõlder were on a charge – demonstrating the rally-winning speed of M-Sport’s Ecoboost-powered Ford Fiesta RS WRC whilst holding a comfortable second place overall.
 

Once again, the Estonians were the only crew able to match rally-leader Sebastien Ogier who was benefitting from a substantial advantage as the first car on the road. By contrast, Tänak was the eighth man into the stages but that didn’t stop him showcasing formidable speed.
 


With full commitment through the Welsh forests, Tänak and Mõlder secured more stage wins than anyone else.



Posting the fastest time through four of today’s eight stages, they reduced the gap to the lead and will be on full attack tomorrow – putting pressure on the World Champion as they hunt down an elusive first victory.
 

With just over 30 seconds to find in 52.08 kilometres it won’t be an easy task, but anything can happen at Wales Rally GB and the Estonians will certainly be determined to put themselves in the best possible position.
 

Elsewhere in the M-Sport World Rally Team, Mads Østberg and Ola Fløene continued to deliver a polished performance – keeping their Fiesta well clear of the pitfalls that catch out a number of crews year-on-year.

 
Having ‘ssssssuffered’ a suspected snake bite yesterday afternoon which caused his left hand to swell, Fløene was not feeling 100 percent but his professionalism and determination came to the fore as he navigated his compatriot through the challenging speed tests.
 

Pleased with their performance behind the wheel, the pairing continued to work on the set-up and were on-pace with rivals Meeke and Sordo – maintaining their seventh position at the end of the day.
 

In the sister M-Sport Fiesta RS WRC, Éric Camilli and Benjamin Veillas were recovering from yesterday’s time loss and opted for a mature approach which yielded some positive results.
 

With little to fight for, the Frenchmen focused on learning the stages ahead of next year and often found themselves on pace with Østberg, Sordo and Meeke which bodes well for the future when considering their inexperience at this level.
 

Keen to get the maximum out of the weekend, Camilli plans to continue in the same vein tomorrow so as to be as prepared as possible when he returns next year.





 
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Mads Østberg (7th) said:


 
“It’s been another typical day at Wales Rally GB with rain, mud and fog. It looked really dry on the recce, but today it was completely different – full wet with full fog and very tricky conditions.
 

“We also had a bit of a strange morning with Ola not feeling 100 percent. He was acting very strange and even in the stages he struggled a lot. He was reading the notes very strangely and we are a team so then I struggled as well.
 

“It looks as though he has been bitten by a snake! I don’t know if that’s what it was but it certainly looks that way and he wasn’t feeling very well at all. At the Regroup I made him see the doctor and after some medicine and a bit of a break he was feeling much better which is the main thing.”
 






Éric Camilli (10th) said:
 

“It’s been a good day for us, with proper Wales Rally GB conditions. It’s not been easy of course, but after the time loss yesterday we decided to take it steady to learn the stages and have really enjoyed the day.
 

“At times we pushed and were able to match the likes of Mads, Kris and Dani. They have a lot of experience here in a world rally car – and I have none – so that was very good to see.



Of course there’s still a long way to go before we can be setting the sort of pace that Sebastien and Ott are setting up front, but this is a very good start and a good step ahead of next year.”
 




Team Principal, Malcolm Wilson OBE, said:

 
“It’s been another fantastic day for Ott and Raigo in very difficult conditions. They’ve managed to reduce the gap a little and there is still quite a way to go.



There might only be 50 kilometres tomorrow and Ogier isn’t the easiest of men to catch, but we’ll keep the pressure up and as we have already seen, anything can happen.”





Anna Louise Rudd- photos M-Sport