Friday
Ott Tänak emerged from a punishing Friday at EKO Acropolis Rally Greece with a slender lead as soaring temperatures and savage road conditions ripped through the FIA World Rally Championship field.
The Hyundai driver survived a chaotic day of attrition to end with a 3.0sec buffer over his i20 N Rally1 team-mate Adrien Fourmaux, whose pace and poise have put the Frenchman right in the hunt for a maiden WRC win.
Fourmaux was rapid and resilient, shrugging off a frustrating delay while stuck in Katsuta’s dust on SS2 to win three stages.
Eight-time world champion Sébastien Ogier lay third overnight, 16.9sec off the lead in his Toyota GR Yaris Rally1. The eight-time world champion started strongly and led the rally until SS5, but earlier damage limited his tyre options for the final two stages.
Behind the top three, championship leader Elfyn Evans held fourth after long day of road-opening in his Toyota, while Grégoire Munster sat a fine fifth aboard his M-Sport Ford Puma Rally1 – the Luxembourger openly playing the long game with a focus on staying clear of trouble.
Takamoto Katsuta was sixth and over two and a half minutes back from the lead after back-to-back punctures on the opening two stages, with Rovanperä seventh, still in the fight despite stopping to change a wheel on the penultimate stage.
Defending champion and last year’s Acropolis winner Neuville, eighth, cut a frustrated figure after a day that could – and perhaps should – have delivered more.
Saturday
Tänak would set himself up on delivering Hyundai Motorsport its first victory of the 2025 FIA World Rally Championship season after a commanding Saturday at the scorching EKO Acropolis Rally Greece.
The Estonian began the day with a slender 3.0sec advantage but blew the field apart in searing central Greek heat, claiming five stage wins out of six to establish a 43.6sec buffer over Sébastien Ogier heading into Sunday’s four-stage finale.
Behind him, Ogier focused on consistency rather than chasing stage wins. The Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 driver edged Tänak by just 0.1sec in SS10 – the only stage Tänak didn’t top – but chose not to take unnecessary risks elsewhere.
Trouble is exactly what befell Adrien Fourmaux. The Frenchman had held second until an impact with a rock in SS10 damaged the rear suspension of his i20 N Rally1.
He dropped over a minute and later reached the end of SS11 with a tyre off the rim. Despite the drama, he clung on to third overnight, 1min 24.4sec adrift of Tänak. Elfyn Evans remained a distant fourth after a steady but unspectacular day.
Further back, the Acropolis continued to punish. Kalle Rovanperä was running mid-pack before going off in SS11, while Takamoto Katsuta also slid wide and became beached in the same test. Both Toyota drivers retired for the day.
It was another bruising leg for Neuville. After losing time to a puncture in the morning, the Hyundai man fought back into fifth overall – though still over a minute behind Evans.
Grégoire Munster completed the leg sixth despite struggling with a faulty handbrake throughout the day. Oliver Solberg continued to lead WRC2 in seventh overall with a comfortable buffer over Gus Greensmith, Kajetan Kajetanowicz and Yohan Rossel.
Josh McErlean dropped to 13th after nursing a broken rear driveshaft through two morning stages and completing the afternoon with no handbrake.
Sunday
Ott Tänak overcame late drama to seal a commanding victory at EKO Acropolis Rally Greece on Sunday, reigniting his FIA World Rally Championship title challenge alongside co-driver Martin Järveoja.
The Hyundai driver had been in fine form all weekend and looked set to complete a clean final day, winning two of Sunday’s four punishing gravel stages. But a gearbox issue struck on the Wolf Power Stage, leaving Tänak to crawl to the finish.
Despite the setback, he had built enough of a margin to hang on – securing his and Hyundai’s first victory since the 2024 Central European Rally by 32.8sec with a result that also ended Toyota’s unbeaten run in 2025.
The result moves the Estonian to within just 12 points of championship leader Elfyn Evans, with Ogier sitting between the pair, three points ahead of Tänak. With his home round in Estonia followed by the ultra-fast stages of Finland next on the calendar, Tänak and Järveoja enter a pivotal stretch on familiar ground.
Adrien Fourmaux celebrated his second podium with Hyundai in third after recovering from Saturday suspension damage. It was a much-needed result for the Frenchman, who hadn’t scored points since his fifth-place finish in the Canary Islands back in April.
Championship leader Evans took fourth place despite opening the road on Friday. A solid haul of points – including fourth in the Wolf Power Stage – helped minimise the damage to his title lead.
Thierry Neuville salvaged fifth overall after Friday punctures derailed his early podium push. A damaged shock absorber and a mysterious technical issue – which forced the Belgian to stop and restart his car in the penultimate stage – further compounded a frustrating weekend.
Grégoire Munster had been running just behind before M-Sport opted to retire his Puma Rally1 during Saturday evening service due to a technical issue – promoting WRC2 winner Oliver Solberg to sixth overall.
Solberg led home a pack of WRC2 runners, with Gus Greensmith holding off Yohan Rossel to claim second in the category and seventh overall. Kajetan Kajetanowicz and Alejandro Cachón completed the top 10.
