EKO Acropolis Rally Greece Event Recap

EKO Acropolis Rally Greece has come to an end, marking the end of the 10th round of the 2022 WRC season.

Championship Rundown

Kalle Rovanperä would only gain four points from EKO Acropolis Rally Greece. After suspension damage on day three took him out of contention for a top 10 finish. Ott Tänak would take second overall and full power stage points. Thus closing the gap even further between him and Rovanperä. As well as putting Tänak back in contention for the championship. Tänak now sits 53 points behind Rovanperä heading into Repco Rally New Zealand later this month. Thierry Neuville would regain third overall with his first win of the season. Now leading Elfyn Evans by 15 points. Takamoto Katsuta would remain fifth overall, leading Craig Breen by 23 points.

Championship Points After EKO Acropolis Rally Greece

Rovanperä 207
Tänak 154
Neuville 131
Evans 116
Katsuta 100

M-Sport Ford World Rally Team

The M-Sport Ford WRT had a good weekend compared to their last few rallies. Having two drivers in the top five to finish the rally. This was the first time an M-Sport driver finished in the top five since Rally Italy. Where Breen finished second and Loubet fourth. M-Sport needed to send a message this weekend, and they did. Finishing day two holding the top two spots of the rally. Likely taking the overall win if luck was on their side. As Loeb would retire from the rally lead at the end of SS8, and Loubet would suffer a puncture on SS9. Loeb likely would’ve won the rally if he wasn’t forced to retire due to an alternator problem. This weekend shows M-Sport can still compete. They just have to find some luck.

Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team

Hyundai couldn’t have asked for a much better result. Completing a podium sweep for the first time in team history. Thierry Neuville inherited the rally lead on SS9 after Loeb retired and Loubet lost time. Neuville never looked back. Ott Tänak would finish second, finishing the rally 15 seconds behind Neuville. Dani Sordo completed the podium sweep taking third, finishing the rally nearly two minutes behind Neuville. With this sweep, Hyundai moves 63 points behind Toyota in the Manufacturer’s championship. Something nobody thought would be possible heading into the event.

Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team

Heading into EKO Acropolis Rally Greece, Toyota looked untouchable. Leading both the Drivers and Manufacturers championship by healthy margins. Unfortunately for Toyota, some things are too good to be true, and the rally isn’t that simple. Nothing is given, and everything is earned in this sport. Laying back and hoping everything goes right rarely goes well. Toyota has now lost three straight events and seen their lead in the Manufacturer’s championship nearly disappear just as quickly as they got it. Toyota has to step up their game in New Zealand later this month, or they may not take a single championship home this year.

EKO Acropolis Rally Greece Bites

Days One and Two finished without any major accidents or retirements. Day Three saw a completely different story. In just the span of an hour, Sebastian Loeb would retire from the lead. Kalle Rovanperä would be out of podium contention. Finally, Pierre-Louis Loubet would suffer a puncture putting him out of podium contention. Later on, Greensmith would temporarily retire due to a mechanical problem. Lappi would retire due to what is believed to be bad fuel. This continued shortly into day four as Elfyn Evans would retire with a turbo problem before SS13. Fortunately, Evans would be the final victim in the WRC1 category.