wrc acropolis rally greece 2026: conor edwards
WRC Acropolis Rally Greece
Acropolis Rally Greece once again lived up to its reputation as one of the toughest events on the FIA World Rally Championship calendar, with brutal gravel stages, relentless tyre wear and dramatic twists culminating in a memorable victory for Sébastien Ogier. The Toyota driver claimed his second victory of the season after prevailing in a thrilling three-day battle with reigning world champion Thierry Neuville, whose hopes of victory were cruelly dashed by a double puncture on Sunday.
Friday
Friday's opening leg immediately highlighted the punishing nature of the Greek stages, where tyre management proved just as important as outright speed. Neuville emerged as the driver to beat after avoiding the drama that affected many of his rivals, ending the day with a 9.7 second advantage over Ogier. Hyundai initially looked set to dominate after team-mate Adrien Fourmaux surged into the early lead. However, a front-right puncture on Stage 4 cost the Frenchman valuable time and handed the initiative to Neuville. Although Ogier steadily reduced the gap throughout the afternoon, Neuville responded by winning Stage 6 before the Toyota driver trimmed the deficit once more on the day's final test.
The day's biggest story came from Jon Armstrong, the M-Sport Ford driver was holding an impressive third overall at the midday remote service before taking his maiden World Rally Championship stage victory. Armstrong edged Ogier by just 0.6 seconds to record a remarkable fastest time. His fairy tale, however, ended almost immediately on the following stage with a front-right puncture combined with a loss of engine power cost more than four minutes before a turbo issue forced his retirement on the road section.
Armstrong's exit promoted Fourmaux back onto the podium, while M-Sport team-mates Josh McErlean and Martins Sesks climbed to fourth and fifth respectively after surviving the treacherous conditions. Road position continued to play a major role throughout the field. Championship leader Elfyn Evans endured a difficult day opening the road, eventually recovering to seventh, while Takamoto Katsuta successfully negotiated the rough conditions to finish Friday sixth overall.
Saturday
Saturday produced one of the closest battles of the season as Ogier and Neuville traded blows across the Acropolis' unforgiving gravel roads. Beginning the day 4.1 seconds behind, Ogier delivered a superb drive through the 25 km Aghii Theodori stage to overturn the deficit and snatch the rally lead by 1.3 seconds. Neuville admitted his Hyundai struggled for rear-end stability on the sandy sections, preventing him from matching Ogier's pace despite maintaining a strong rhythm. Remarkably, the pair could not be separated on the following Loutraki stage, recording identical times and ensuring the margin remained just 1.3 seconds heading into Sunday's deciding stages.
Behind the leaders, Katsuta strengthened his grip on third despite briefly fearing a puncture during Stage 14. Fourmaux initially looked capable of mounting a challenge after setting the fastest time, but another puncture, his third of the event, cost almost two minutes and dropped him behind McErlean. Toyota youngster Sami Pajari remained within touching distance, while Evans continued to battle through tyre issues to hold seventh.
Sunday
The decisive moment arrived on Sunday after two days of relentless pressure between Ogier and Neuville. Having taken the lead on the opening stage of the final leg, Ogier maintained his slender advantage before disaster struck for his Hyundai rival. A devastating double rear puncture on the penultimate stage cost Neuville more than 53 seconds, instantly ending what had been one of the closest fights of the season. Ogier capitalised by dominating the stage before completing a flawless performance with victory on the final Power Stage, securing maximum championship points by also claiming the Super Sunday classification. The victory marked Ogier's 69th career WRC win and significantly reduced his championship deficit to Evans, reigniting the title race after arriving in Greece 61 points behind his Toyota team-mate.
Katsuta completed an impressive drive to finish third despite the disadvantage of running second on the road throughout Friday. The Japanese driver steadily climbed the order on outright pace and successfully avoided the costly mistakes that caught out many of his rivals. M-sport’s McErlean celebrated the best result of his WRC career by finishing fourth after surviving a late off-road excursion, narrowly holding off Pajari. Evans recovered from his difficult road-opening duties and multiple punctures to finish seventh, while Fourmaux eventually slipped to sixth after suffering two further punctures on Sunday.
The final classification was later revised after both Fourmaux and McErlean received one-minute penalties when their respective co-drivers were found not to have their seat belts correctly fastened following tyre changes during special stages. The amended results increased Evans' championship advantage from seven to 11 points over Toyota team-mate Katsuta, while Ogier's dominant weekend ensured the battle for the 2026 world title remains very much alive heading into the next round.
