Adrien Fourmaux Leads Dramatic Opening Day at Rally Saudi Arabia as Ogier Edges Ahead in WRC Title Fight

Adrien Fourmaux ended Thursday atop the Rally Saudi Arabia standings after a chaotic opening leg in the desert, while Sébastien Ogier moved narrowly ahead of Elfyn Evans in the FIA World Rally Championship title race.

The Frenchman navigated a turbulent day of shifting momentum to close out the first leg with a 6.0sec lead over Toyota’s Sami Pajari, with early star performer Mārtiņš Sesks just 0.9sec further behind in third.

Drama-Filled Afternoon Reshapes the Front Order

The rally lead changed hands multiple times through the day as conditions deteriorated across the seven competitive stages. Sesks dominated the morning, winning two tests and opening up a comfortable buffer before a right-rear puncture on the repeat run of Moon Stage cost him over 15 seconds.

Pajari briefly moved ahead after winning SS6 but suffered a front-right delamination on the final test, dropping him behind Fourmaux. Both drivers remain firmly in contention heading into Friday’s long leg.

Fourmaux credited his balanced approach:

“I’m really pleased with the day… it’s always playing with the balance between pushing and saving the car and the tyres. The gaps are small, so nothing is done for sure, but it’s positive to finish the day like that.”

Title Battle Swings as Ogier Outperforms Struggling Evans

The biggest development of the day came behind the leaders. Championship leader Elfyn Evans, running first on the road, battled poor grip throughout as he swept loose sand and rocks for the field. A minor overshoot in the morning compounded his troubles, and the Welshman ended the day ninth, more than one minute off the pace.

Team-mate Sébastien Ogier, trailing Evans by just three points entering the season finale, managed the rough conditions more effectively. He ended the day seventh, moving into the provisional championship lead by a single point.

Ogier said:

“My main target is Elfyn and Kalle… on that side we have done what we had to do – we are in front of them.”

Behind them, Kalle Rovanperä’s slim title hopes took another hit after two punctures dropped him to eighth, slotting between Ogier and Evans.

Evans will run fourth on the road on Friday, while Ogier starts sixth, directly behind Rovanperä—giving the Frenchman a small but meaningful advantage as the title fight intensifies.

Hyundai’s Tänak and Neuville in the Mix

Ott Tänak sits fourth overnight after winning SS7 despite reporting potential suspension damage. Team-mate Thierry Neuville follows in fifth after contending with a cracked windscreen and a slow puncture, while Takamoto Katsutaholds sixth after a cautious, tyre-saving approach.

Further back, Grégoire Munster and Oliver Solberg completed the top 11, while Munster’s M-Sport team-mates Josh McErlean and Nasser Al-Attiyah were slowed by tyre-related issues—Al-Attiyah losing over seven minutes due to a stuck jack during a wheel change.

A Massive Friday Ahead

Friday promises to be the longest and most demanding leg of Rally Saudi Arabia, featuring more than 130km of competitive running across six punishing desert stages that could once again shake up the standings.

Standings After Thursday (SS8/17)

1. A Fourmaux / A Coria (FRA) – Hyundai i20 N Rally1 – 1h 18m 45.3s
2. S Pajari / M Salminen (FIN) – Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 – +6.0s
3. M Sesks / R Francis (LVA) – Ford Puma Rally1 – +6.9s
4. O Tänak / M Järveoja (EST) – Hyundai i20 N Rally1 – +13.7s
5. T Neuville / M Wydaeghe (BEL) – Hyundai i20 N Rally1 – +14.9s
6. T Katsuta / A Johnston (JPN) – Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 – +22.9s