Sebastien Ogier is closing in on his fourth World Rally Championship crown after taking the lead at the Rally of Spain, where Ireland’s Craig Breen lies 13th after breaking a drive shaft on the opening stage.
Breen, who was recently confirmed as a Citroen Racing driver for the next two seasons, had to complete the majority of the morning in two-wheel drive, dropping to 15th in the process.
However, the Waterford man showed his class with impressive times on the second loop of stages today to rise to 13th overnight.
Ogier, who leads by 68 points with two races remaining, was left trailing home favourite Dani Sordo on Friday, but ended Saturday's penultimate leg of the four-day mixed surface event with a 5.8 seconds lead in his Volkswagen Polo.
Sordo dropped down into second, with his Hyundai team-mate Thierry Neuville currently third in Spain, while Andreas Mikkelsen, who sits second in the championship standings, crashed out after drifting into a barrier in his Polo on a fast corner before rolling heavily.
Frenchman Ogier told www.wrc.com: "Dani was strong and very hard to catch. We managed to come back and had some good times, but I knew it would be tough. Sunday will be exciting again and we'll have to continue in the same way tomorrow."
