Evans Crashes Out of Lead at Rally Croatia
Elfyn Evans, a five-time runner-up in the World Rally Championship (WRC), remains without a win in the series after crashing out while leading on the first day of Rally Croatia.
The current WRC leader had set the fastest times on the opening two stages of the event. However, during the third stage of the morning, Evans overshot a right-hand corner and became stuck in dense foliage off the road.
As he approached the bend, Evans was heard saying:
"I thought it was a three"
This suggested there may have been a pacenote misunderstanding with his co-driver, Scott Martin.
Evans' incident allowed fellow Toyota driver Sami Pajari to take the lead. This setback also affected Evans' attempt to extend his advantage in the championship standings over teammate Oliver Solberg.
Solberg, from Sweden, had started the fourth round of the Championship in second place, trailing Evans by eight points. However, Solberg had also crashed out earlier in the rally, hitting a bank on the opening stage just two hours before Evans' crash.
Additionally, Irish driver Jon Armstrong, competing for M-Sport Ford, was forced to retire after striking a concrete kerb on stage four.
