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WRC.com–RallySwedenLivetext2018

• Until then - Keep an eye on wrc.com for all the latest news and analysis, and don't forget the new 'All Live' service on WRC+ for loads of exclusive extras. Bye for now.

Sun 13:48

• We will return - On 8 March to bring you reports from the championship's third round, Rally Guanajuato México

Sun 13:48

• Finish control - Stages done, and that's where we'll finish our live text service from Rally Sweden

Sun 13:48

• Sweden JWRC FINAL - 1.Rådström 3h16m26.0s, 2.Bergkvist +7.3s, 3.Tannert +4m43.2s, 4.Franceschi +4m52.7s, 5.Folb +4m54.2s

Sun 13:48

• Ogier update - The champion comes clean on the Power Stage mystery. "It was a team strategy. From our place in the order we had no chance. We tried to play a bit and get an acceptable position. On the Power Stage I made a few mistakes, I wasn't used to so much grip, but finally we achieved our objective and took some points."

Sun 13:43

• Sweden Power Stage: - 1: Lappi 6m01.2s (5 points) 2: Ogier +1.3s (4 points) 3: Mikkelsen +1.9s (3 points) 4: Neuville +3.2s (2 points) 5: Tänak +5.2s (1 point)

Sun 13:32

• Sweden WRC2 FINAL - 1.Katsuta 3h01m27.5s, 2.Tidemand 4.5s, 3.Veiby 30.5s, 4.Adielsson 1m49.3s, 5.Tuohino 2m29.9s

Sun 13:30

• Sweden FINAL - 1.Neuville 2h52m13.1s, 2.Breen +19.8s, 3.Mikkelsen +28.3s, 4.Lappi +45.8s, 5.Paddon +54.4s

Sun 13:28

• SS19: Ogier - He completes the Power Stage in the second quickest time. That's four bonus points in the bag. He picks up a 50sec penalty for his late start but still finishes 10th.

Sun 13:23

• SS19: Neuville - "It's an incredible weekend. We didn't expect to be so fast over here year, but the team and the car gave us the chance to fight for victory. We deserved it last year, even more this year. There are more than 200 people in the team, they are committed and gave us everything. I'm really happy with the weekend and looking forward to the upcoming events."

Sun 13:22

• Neuville - Car parked on the podium, Thierry and co-driver Nicholas are on the roof in celebration!

Sun 13:17

• SS19: Neuville - Making his way to the finish podium in the service park

Sun 13:16

• He's done it! - Victory for Thierry Neuville in Sweden!

Sun 13:14

• SS19: Neuville - Underway. Anxious faces at the Hyundai team HQ watching the live coverage.

Sun 13:13

• SS19: Breen - He's through, fifth quickest so far, and that's a career-best second place for Craig. A big handshake in the car with co-driver Scott. Craig says: "I'm not going to cry this time. It's awesome, I'm absolutely on top of the world, a bit stepping stone this weekend. I have to thank every single person around me. It's been difficult this past year but the boys have made this thing work!"

Sun 13:12

• SS19: Weather update - Heavy snow falling now

Sun 13:08

• SS19: Mikkelsen - Second quickest on stage and third position for Andreas. "Nice to end up in the podium - my first with Hyundai. A clean stage. You really have to risk everything to get the maximum points on the Power Stage. That's a fine line when you're in a podium position."

Sun 13:07

• SS19: Ogier update - Waiting at the start line. He will tackle the stage after the WRC 2 runners.

Sun 13:05

• SS19: Paddon - He's lost 11.5sec and that drops him behind Lappi to fifth. "Annoying. A small mistake, I just stalled it and it wouldn't restart. It is what it is. Plenty of positive to take away anyway. We're not in championship contention this year. We can be positive going forward."

Sun 13:04

• SS19: Paddon - Disaster! He stops at the same place on stage as Solberg. He's moving again now, but that's fourth place gone.

Sun 13:00

• SS19: Lappi - Chasing down Paddon's fourth place, Lappi goes quickest so far by 5.2sec. "Good, but I almost went into a ditch near the end! One mistake otherwise a really good run. Can I beat Paddon here? I don't know. Here was really quick here on the first run. Either way I can be really happy with this rally."

Sun 12:59

• SS19: Ostberg - Third quickest on the Power Stage so far and that's sixth place secure on his debut in the C3. "An amazing weekend. So nice to be back at Citroen. I've really enjoyed it but I felt my lack of experience in this car. But to be here after just half a day testing, to be so competitive, and bring home points, makes me really pleased. I'm just crossing my fingers for the future. I want to do more rallies in this car."

Sun 12:56

• SS19: Latvala - Second quickest so far, 1.1sec slower than Tanak and he finishes in 7th position overall. "It's been a tough one but we are here, we got the points - that's the most important thing."

Sun 12:52

• SS19: Suninen - 6m17.4s, fourth quickest so far and that's eighth place secure for the ambitious young Finn on only his third appearance in a world rally car. "We learned a lot, the positive thing is we are fastest Ford, but I'm not satisfied to finish eighth. Now we try and take these leanings into the rest of the year."

Sun 12:49

• SS19: Tanak - Quickest so far, 6.1sec up on Meeke. That's ninth position for Ott. Any news on Seb? "I didn't see him before the stage. Maybe Seb is playing some games to get a better start position?"

Sun 12:42

• SS19: Ogier - Was due to start at 1230hrs. But he hasn't. A tactical delay or a problem? A later position in the start order would give him a better chance for Power Stage points. We'll keep you posted.

Sun 12:36

• SS19: Evans - 1.9sec slower than Evans on stage. Looks like 11th position for Elfyn, his event blighted by an early puncture and set-up issues. "We had a bit of a go here but it was very slippery at the start, a few little errors here and there."

Sun 12:34

• SS19: Solberg - 34.1sec slower than Meeke, Solberg loses a few seconds with a stop near the finish. "I stalled the engine and couldn't get it restarted. I thought it was broken!"

Sun 12:31

• SS19: Meeke - He completes in 6m12.5s. His prospects not helped by the pre-stage passage of a snow plough. "It pushed all the loose snow into the ruts. If my time is within half a minute of the fastest time I'll be happy."

Sun 12:27

• SS19: LIVE - Meeke in stage. Light snow falling.

Sun 12:20

• Stage info: SS19 - Torsby , 9.56km. A mix of new roads and some last used three years ago, before a popular spectator area into the finish. Although the roads are narrow and bumpy, they are fast and tricky and among those to have fallen foul of this stage are Sébastien Ogier, Jari-Matti Latvala and Ott Tänak. The final 3km run alongside Torsby airfield service park, and before the last section near a ski centre is a rallycross-style arena with plenty of fast bends and a jump.

Sun 12:19

• Power Stage timetable - A few tweaks to the running order and start intervals to suit the live TV schedule. Here's how, and when, the top world rally car runners will tackle the Power Stage: 1. Meeke (1218hrs), 2. Solberg (1222hrs), 3. Evans (1226hrs), 4. Ogier (1230hrs), 5. Tänak (1234hrs), 6. Suninen (1238hrs), 7. Latvala (1242hrs), 8. Østberg (1246hrs), 9. Lappi (1250hrs), 10. Paddon (1254hrs), 11. Mikkelsen (1258hrs), 12. Breen (1303hrs), 13. Neuville (1308hrs).

Sun 12:03

• Next stage: 1218hrs - That's when the Power Stage goes live. We'll take a brief break.

Sun 10:53

• Up next: Regroup - Crews gathering at Torsby for a regroup before the live TV Power Stage.

Sun 10:52

• SS18: Junior update - Extremely tight at the top. Bergkvist is 3.4sec quicker than leader Radstrom here and Radstrom's advantage for the Power Stage is slashed to just 6.1sec. Bergkvist promises a maximum attack push on the final stage. Tannert is well cushioned in third.

Sun 10:50

• Sweden WRC2 after SS18 - 1.Katsuta 2h55m02.7s, 2.Tidemand +10.1s, 3.Veiby +27.8s, 4.Adielsson +1m50.0s, 5.Tuohino +2m23.6s

Sun 10:44

• Sweden after SS18 - 1.Neuville 2h46m08.7s, 2.Breen +16.2s, 3.Mikkelsen +29.6s, 4.Paddon +46.1s, 5.Lappi +49.0s

Sun 10:44

• SS18: WRC 2 Veiby - 17.7sec behind Tidemand in the standings, Veiby says the battle is over. "I think so. A clean run through with no mistakes. I'm in a position where I'm unable to fight. That's it."

Sun 10:37

• SS18: WRC 2 Tidemand - Three-tenths slower than Katsuta here, and Pontus accepts that a 10.1sec deficit is too much to close on the Power Stage. "It will be like this," he says. "I really was trying, not so much more to do."

Sun 10:34

• SS18: WRC 2 Katsuta - Just one stage separating him from a momentous maiden win in WRC 2. "This stage we pushed very hard. We had a half spin in a slow section, so not so much time lost. Otherwise very good."

Sun 10:31

• SS18: Meeke - Sixth fastest. Any chance of points on the Power Stage? "Absolutely no way. We're first on the road."

Sun 10:28

• SS18: Neuville - Second quickest here and Neuville's rally lead before the Power Stage is up to 16.2sec. Will he be pushing to take bonus points on the Power Stage? "Definitely not. No, no, no. We have increased the gap now and can go carefully."

Sun 10:27

• SS18: Breen - "Sorry if you're fed up hearing this, but it's so much fun, it's just a pleasure. We've been fighting for a year to get back in this rhythm. One more stage to come, I could do another three or four days of this."

Sun 10:25

• SS18: Mikkelsen - 6.4sec slower than Lappi. "I thought I had a puncture on the front left. The car wouldn't turn well to the right. It never got worse, so I drove normally again, but it cost us some time."

Sun 10:23

• SS18: Paddon - 4.5sec slower than Lappi and Paddon's advantage heading to the Power Stage is 2.9sec. "It felt better, a step in the right direction. We'll see. The Toyotas are fast on this stage. We have a little gap for the last stage, we'll certainly try to defend it."

Sun 10:21

• SS18: Ostberg - Third quickest. "The car is similar to earlier, not perfect but it feels better when the grip is increasing. That did help a little bit here. Not perfect but okay, I was pushing."

Sun 10:19

• SS18: Lappi - Quickest by 10.7sec as he chases down Paddon. His rival 2.6sec slower at the 16km split. "Okay, more tricky conditions now, I just tried to be very clean. I thought I was careful, maybe too careful?"

Sun 10:17

• SS18: Latvala - A 197kph sprint to the finish and Latvala bags fastest time so far. "The feeling is there, I'm happy now. More difficult on the second pass than the first. When you break the ice, the snow on the side makes it more slippery."

Sun 10:15

• SS18: Suninen - 1.1sec slower than Tanak. "Better now, I was using the car more, getting used to the new set-ups. Small problems with the wipers, but okay."

Sun 10:12

• SS18: Tanak - Quickest so far. "We will try on the Power Stage. We tried to be extremely careful here to keep a good set of tyres. Let's see what's possible."

Sun 10:11

• SS18: Ogier - "We hope the conditions on the Power Stage will be okay. That is the only target for us now."

Sun 10:09

• SS18: Evans - "It will be very difficult to salvage any points from the Power Stage in this road position. We'll try. Never say never."

Sun 10:07

• SS18: Solberg - "Lots of things in the road. A lot slower than before, but that's how it is being first on the road."

Sun 10:05

• SS18: LIVE - Solberg underway. Snow stopped. More misty and cloudy than earlier. Low cloud means no WRC TV helicam for now :(

Sun 09:54

• Next stage: 0951hrs - That's Solberg's start time for Likenäs part two.

Sun 08:47

• Up next: Regroup - Crews gathering at Ambjorby for a regroup before a refuel and the repeat of Likenäs.

Sun 08:46


Sun 08:44

• Sweden after SS17 - 1.Neuville 2h34m51.8s, 2.Breen +14.8s, 3.Mikkelsen +25.1s, 4.Paddon +43.5s, 5.Lappi +50.9s. Lappi up to 5th

Sun 08:37

• SS17: WRC 2 Arai - "Two spins in this stage. A strange feeling from the rear diff, maybe it's not working."

Sun 08:37

• SS17: WRC 2 Kristoffersson - "It's giving me a taste for rallying. This stage is very, very nice. Learning all the time."

Sun 08:34

• SS17: WRC 2 Adielsson - "We are in a good position. No risks."

Sun 08:32

• SS17: WRC 2 Veiby - "Clean run here, too much to catch Pontus."

Sun 08:31

• SS17: WRC 2 Tidemand - "I'm trying."

Sun 08:30

• SS17: WRC 2 Katsuta - Cleanly through. "No pressure."

Sun 08:30

• SS17: Meeke - Back today after his turbo-related retirement on Saturday. His C3 has light front wing damage after contact with the snow. "I spun. Caught the inside of a snow bank and went round. I had to drive back up the road before I could turn around." He drops 50sec to the leaders.

Sun 08:29

• SS17: Neuville - 11th quickest. His rally lead over Breen now 14.8sec. "I was quite careful in this one. We confirmed the pace notes for the second pass. Should be fine."

Sun 08:26

• SS17: Breen - "A nice rhythm. Pace notes a bit slow in places. A few changes to make before the second run."

Sun 08:23

• SS17: Mikkelsen - "A clean run, one small mistake but an okay run. A few set up changes and the car feels good."

Sun 08:21

• SS17: Meeke - A spin reported at 5.7km.

Sun 08:20

• SS17: Paddon - Sixth quickest, and Lappi is now just 7.4sec behind in the standings. "I wanted to push, and I tried, but I don't have the rhythm. I can't get the car to do what I want. Difficult."

Sun 08:20

• SS17: Ostberg - 15.8sec off the pace and he loses position to Lappi. "Not good. We did a small mistake and we ended up being similar to yesterday morning. A misunderstanding with the team. A shame. I struggled to drive the car."

Sun 08:18

• SS17: Lappi - Second fastest, 1.3sec slower than Tanak. "For me not good enough. I don't know this stage and in many places I was in the wrong gear. I was so fed up. I will push harder next time."

Sun 08:16

• SS17: Latvala - "The team has done a very good job the car, it's handling very well now. There was a problem with the front differential. Everything is right now but I was hesitating a bit."

Sun 08:14

• SS17: Suninen - "Happy with the car, some improvement to the set-up. More grip than I expected,"

Sun 08:11

• SS17: Tanak - Quickest so far. "Not so bad, the grip is quite consistent."

Sun 08:09

• SS17: Ogier - "I need to look after my tyres for the Power Stage, but with the amount of snow around they should be okay."

Sun 08:07

• SS17: Evans - "A clean enough run but vision is a problem here as it gets light. Not dark enough for the lights, not easy to read the road."

Sun 08:06

• SS17: Solberg - "Not easy but I try my best. Fantastic conditions out here now."

Sun 08:03

• Tyres - Not a tricky call this morning. All Michelin WRC drivers have the same package of five X-Ice North 3 tyres, each carrying 384 metal studs.

Sun 07:55

• SS17: LIVE - Solberg underway.

Sun 07:52

• Stage info: SS17 - Likenäs 1, 21.19km. Likenäs is a Rally Sweden classic dating back to the 1970s but was driven in this direction for the first time only 12 months ago. It starts just before Ambjörby’s motor stadium bowl, but then it is down to proper business on twisty, but fast roads. Crests, dips, bumps – Likenäs has everything and it’s a stage the drivers will love.

Sun 07:51

• SS17: Standby - WRC+ live tracking shows cars gathering at the start control. Start time for Solberg: 0750hrs

Sun 07:50

• Start intervals - Two-minute intervals for the World Rally Cars. One-minute intervals for WRC 2 and Junior WRC competitors.

Sun 07:50

• Running order - Reverse rally classification order again today, and that gives Henning Solberg the dubious honour of leading the cars through. Here's how the top

world rally car runners will line up: 1. Solberg, 2. Evans, 3. Ogier, 4. Tänak, 5. Suninen, 6. Latvala, 7. Lappi, 8. Østberg, 9. Paddon, 10. Mikkelsen, 11. Breen, 12. Neuville, 13. Meeke

Sun 07:50

• Weather - A light dusting of snow overnight, and light snow is still falling. A cloudy, grey day in prospect with more light snow forecast. Temperature between -4°C and -1°C.

Sun 07:46

• Stage live times - SS17: 0750hrs. SS18: 0951hrs. SS19: 1218hrs.

Sun 07:46

• Sunday's vital stats - Start: 0630hrs. Number of stages: 3. Stage distance: 51.94km. Finish: 1300hrs

Sun 07:45

• Look out for... - The Power Stage is the best chance for drivers down the order to salvage some points from this rally. Expect last heroics from Sébastien Ogier especially.

Sun 07:42

• Sunday's itinerary 2/2 - Crews will then return to the service park in Torsby for a regroup, before the live TV Power Stage takes place on the nearby 9.56-kilometre Torsby test that was previously run on Friday night.

Sun 07:41

• Sunday's itinerary 1/2 - Starts with two runs of the 21.19km Likenäs test in the morning.

Sun 07:41

• So, what's happening? - Sunday is the rally's third and final day. Just three stages remain on Rally Sweden’s 19-stage itinerary, a total of just 51.94km

Sun 07:41

• We're live - On wrc.com and the WRC app, providing text updates from today's stages

Sun 07:41

• Good morning - And welcome back, one last time, to our live text coverage of Rally Sweden

Sun 07:38

• Until then - Keep an eye on wrc.com for all the latest news, and don't forget the new 'All Live' service on WRC+ for loads of exclusive extras. Bye for now.

Sat 20:24

• Join us on Sunday - When the rally resumes with its third and final day. We'll be here from 0750hrs, when the action kicks off with the Likenas test. Just three more stages remain, including the rally closing Power Stage.

Sat 20:24

• Leaders through - And that's where we'll end our live text coverage today

Sat 20:21


Sat 20:05

• Sweden after SS16 - 1.Neuville 2h23m23.8s, 2.Breen +22.7s, 3.Mikkelsen +32.0s, 4.Paddon +48.6s, 5.Østberg +56.8s

Sat 20:00

• SS16: WRC 2 Veiby - Quickest so far in WRC 2 and Veiby holds third place overnight, 8.6sec behind Tidemand. "Wow," he says. "We should be happy with the day, okay, struggling a bit on the second loop but finishing well here. All going according to the plan."

Sat 19:58

• SS16: WRC 2 Tidemand - Tidemand ends the day trailing Katsuta by 12.2sec. Can he steal the win tomorrow? "I will try my best in this situation. We will see."

Sat 19:56

• SS16: WRC 2 Katsuta - The WRC 2 leader through cleanly. "These last two stages were slippery and tricky but I enjoyed this one, perhaps too much, I was a little too aggressive. Still three more stages to go tomorrow. I will keep good concentration and keep pushing."

Sat 19:54

• SS16: Neuville - Fastest. And Neuville's overnight rally lead over Breen is 22.7sec. "It's already better than last year! A really lovely day for us. The car was working great, okay a small issue today that we could fix, other than that a good job. Good tyre management I think, I'm really pleased and big thanks to the team."

Sat 19:52

• SS16: Neuville - Fastest. And Neuville's overnight rally lead over Breen is 22.7sec. "It's already better than last year! A really lovely day for us. The car was working great, okay a small issue today that we could fix, other than that a good job. Good tyre management I think, I'm really pleased and big thanks to the team."

Sat 19:52

• SS16: Mikkelsen - Second quickest. "Okay, a clean stage again, we had to wake up after the long road section. We paid a high price for our mistakes today."

Sat 19:49

• SS16: Paddon - 8.2sec off the pace here, slowest through so far. "We got half stuck in a snow bank near the start. The car over rotated on a hairpin. We hoped for more from today."

Sat 19:47

• SS16: Breen - "Difficult to keep the car in the line. Not the best end to the day but we have to be happy with our speed."

Sat 19:45

• SS16: Ostberg - "I forgot to shut my door in the stage and in the first corner it flew open! I'm lacking experience in this car. My set up from the test is the one I'm using - it's the one I know best."

Sat 19:44

• SS16: Suninen - "I was a bit careful in here - a lot of ruts under braking."

Sat 19:41

• SS16: Lappi - Quickest so far. "It's been a steady performance through the rally. I'm very satisfied if we can do top five times almost all the time. A good fight for tomorrow too."

Sat 19:39

• SS16: Latvala - "The morning was quite okay but I'm struggling with the car when there are ruts. Something is wrong with the front diff. We will change the transmission tonight."

Sat 19:38

• SS16: Tanak - "The first part of the day was nice, second half not so nice. A tough rally. From our position in the road order tomorrow we will have no chance on the Power Stage."

Sat 19:35

• SS16: Evans - "Very few positives to take from today."

Sat 19:33

• SS16: Ogier - "I'm happy with my drive today. I've done what I could. Not much to catch today so I did a clean day with no mistakes - that's the only positive. The Power Stage is all I'm thinking about now."

Sat 19:32

• SS16: Solberg - "It's been an okay day. Difficult to be at the front. I am old, but I learned a lot. Tomorrow? Flat out."

Sat 19:29

• Stage info: SS16 - Torsby Sprint, 3.43km. Expect a great atmosphere for Saturday’s final sprint, which covers the final kilometres of the previous night’s longer test. It runs alongside Torsby airfield service park, and before the last section near a ski centre is a rallycross-style arena with plenty of fast bends and a jump.

Sat 19:27


Sat 18:22


Sat 18:18

• SS15: Huttunen vs Veiby - Huttunen wins this heat. "Not my day today," he says. Veiby says, "For sure a challenging day but I've tried my best. I have a cracked brake disc, so I had to be a bit careful here."

Sat 18:17

• SS15: Tidemand vs Katsuta - WRC 2 leader Katsuta is quickest. He says: "Now we are leading but tomorrow we have long stages and the rally is not over yet. A great day today, no issues. We need to continue like this." Tidemand says: "A good stage but to try and catch the guys on the Pirelli tyres here is not easy - I do my best."

Sat 18:15

• SS15: Mikkelsen vs Neuville - Neuville wins the heat. His rally lead over Breen now 19.7sec. "We have quite a good lead now. A bit steady in here, I remember what happened here last year and it wasn't going to happen again." Mikkelsen tales four-tenths out of the gap to Breen. It now stands at 11.6s. "Maybe too much time to catch but for sure it's possible. Let's take another look after the next stage."

Sat 18:11

• SS15: Breen vs Paddon - Goes Breen's way by six-tenths. "We were hoping for a bit more today, but this is all we can do for the moment," says Paddon. Breen says. "We still have one more stage to go today, but for now I think we made the right choice with just one spare tyre. Today has been really nice and enjoyable. It would be nice for this to become normal."

Sat 18:06

• SS15: Ostberg vs Suninen - Ostberg wins the heat by 2.4sec, in the second fastest time so far. "Not so bad. This stage is mainly about not wasting time. A decent run, quite enjoyable." Suninen says: "It was not my favourite one. Not the best confidence. We need to improve tomorrow."

Sat 18:01

• SS15: Lappi vs Latvala - Latvala wins a close heat by six-tenths. "The car is okay when the line is wider but in the ruts the car is horrible. We will change the differential tonight, we have to do it." Lappi says: "It's been a quite good day. Quite a stable performance."

Sat 17:56

• SS15: Tanak vs Evans - Tanak wins and goes fastest so far. "Very different from Thursday, big ruts and slippery. Just a small stage," he says. Evans says: "The surface is really slushy - no problem."

Sat 17:52

• SS15: Ogier vs Solberg - A comfortable win for Ogier. "Our tyres were okay, but there has been snow in here since Thursday, so a bit more loose. We are used to it now," says Seb.

Sat 17:48

• SS15: LIVE - Solberg vs Ogier the first two cars on stage.

Sat 17:45

• Meeke update - His retirement was related to a turbo problem. His car is back in service and the team is investigating whether Kris can restart on Sunday.

Sat 17:41

• Stage info: SS15 - SSS Karlstad 2, 1.90km. Sweeping bends, a spectacular jump and a great atmosphere are the hallmarks of Karlstad’s horse trotting track. Drivers tackle two laps of the ice-based roads in head-to-head duels.

Sat 17:37

• Next stage: 1745hrs - That's when the first pair of cars will take to the ice at the trotting track. We'll resume out live text service then.

Sat 16:12

• Up next: Refuel & regroup - Crews return to Karlstad for this afternoon's penultimate test, a second visit to the city's Super Special test.

Sat 16:11


Sat 16:06


Sat 15:56

• SS14: Neuville - Fastest by 4sec and lucky to emerge unscathed after a shocking corkscrew jump from Colin's Crest - the car landing on its two right wheels. "I touched the bank a bit over Colin's Crest. Last year I took it easy and went out. Now are in a fight so I'm pushing."

Sat 15:53

• SS14: Mikkelsen - Eight-tenths quicker than Breen. "I just tried to keep it clean. A very good run for me. I'm happy with that."

Sat 15:49

• SS14: Paddon - 3.3sec slower than Breen. "Surprisingly slippery. Great to see a lot of fans out here enjoying it. It's fun to fight in these conditions."

Sat 15:47

• SS14: Breen - Quickest through. "More snow in there. With just one spare I think we made the right tyre choice for the loop. Two icy stages to come but I'm reasonably happy."

Sat 15:44

• SS14: Ostberg - Quickest so far and a 41 metre jump from Mads. "It was a nice feeling for sure. When I'm more confident the jump is less important. A good stage. I'm back to basics now with the set-up and I'll probably keep it like this until the end."

Sat 15:40

• SS14: Suninen - Third fastest. "Difficult stage. Just need to improve and do a better job."

Sat 15:37

• SS14: Lappi - A new quickest time for Lappi. "If I can catch Ostberg for sure I will try, but it's so equal. It's not easy to make big differences."

Sat 15:34

• SS14: Latvala - Quickest so far but deeply unhappy with his Yaris. "This car is not okay, there is something strange with the transmission system. It's oversteering and understeering, the engine almost stalls on the gear-change too. We have to see what the problem is. For tomorrow I will change the differential. It has been horrible to drive."

Sat 15:32

• SS14: Tanak - Quickest so far but still fuming after his previous stage collision. "How disappointed am I? I'm really happy."

Sat 15:29

• SS14: Evans - "A fair few studs missing from our tyres now. We'll asses the situation now but maybe two spare tyres could have been a better choice."

Sat 15:25

• SS14: Ogier - A massive 41metre jump over Colin's Crest and Ogier completes 30.1sec quicker than Solberg. "Maybe the jump was the only fun part of the stage. At least we enjoy on the first loop. Now, not much we can do. "

Sat 15:22

• SS14: Solberg - "That was a bad stage. Lots of snow and I had problems with the brakes from the start."

Sat 15:19

• SS14: LIVE - We cross straight across to the re-run of Vargåsen. Solberg started at 1508hrs.

Sat 15:12

• Sweden WRC2 after SS13 - 1.Katsuta 2h17m56.2s, 2.Tidemand +10.3s, 3.Veiby +17.6s, 4.Adielsson +1m28.1s, 5.Tuohino +1m52.5s. Arai engine problem

Sat 15:11

• SS13: WRC 2 Arai - Big delay for the winner of the previous stage. "The engine just stopped 2km before the finish. We were driving in a bumpy section and suddenly it stopped. We had to wait five or 10 minutes before it would restart." His time is 6m17s slower than his team-mate Katsuta.

Sat 15:06

• Sweden after SS13 - 1.Neuville 2h10m47.4s, 2.Breen +14.0s, 3.Mikkelsen +26.8s, 4.Paddon +30.3s, 5.Østberg +48.0s. Meeke and Tanak collide on stage. Meeke retires.

Sat 15:02

• SS13: WRC 2 Kristoffersson - The WRX champion building experience in his Skoda. "I'm a little bit afraid of hanging the rear out too much. Here I feel you can really push if you have balls enough."

Sat 14:59

• SS13: Meeke update - Retired. He has stopped on the road section near to Hagfors town.

Sat 14:56

• SS13: WRC 2 Veiby - 4sec slower than Tidemand. "Such changeable grip. Not the best. I was too careful in the beginning."

Sat 14:54

• SS13: WRC 2 Tidemand - 2.2sec slower than Katsuta. "Very loose in here, difficult to follow him in these conditions. If it was cleaner I think I could catch him."

Sat 14:53

• SS13: WRC 2 Katsuta - "The stage is much worse than the first pass. I tried to push. Happy at the moment."

Sat 14:52

• SS13: Neuville - That's a stage win for Thierry, 6.6sec quicker than Mikkelsen, and his lead over Breen is up to 14sec. "I had quite a big push in there, the car worked well. I kept the rhythm and it seems like it is working well."

Sat 14:50

• SS13: Mikkelsen - Fastest. "A clean stage no mistakes, happy with that."

Sat 14:48

• SS13: Paddon - Second quickest, five-tenths slower than Breen. "Not bad. A lot of gravel in the middle section. Can I get back on the podium? Anything can happen."

Sat 14:47

• SS13: Breen - Quickest. "A lot of gravel in there. Just trying to manage the tyres and not load them so much. The most tricky stage of the rally so far."

Sat 14:44

• SS13: Ostberg - "It was a little bit better. I've changed back to my original set-up."

Sat 14:43

• SS13: Suninen - "Shame for Tanak. Quite okay for us, but difficult to drive in the ruts."

Sat 14:40

• SS13: Lappi - Quickest so far

Sat 14:40

• SS13: Meeke - 5m56sec off the pace. His car has rear left damage. What happened? "Simple mistake, I just nosed into a snow bank and when I got back out and got going I had no engine power. We got out and cleaned everything. Then Ott tried to pass me, I was right over in the ditch but he hit me and then he went off."

Sat 14:40

• SS13: Latvala - Quickest so far. "Very difficult with a mix of snow and gravel. I did what I could. Passing Kris cost me only two or three seconds."

Sat 14:37

• SS13: Tanak - 1m30sec off the pace. What happened? "I caught Kris, tried to pass in a narrow place and he pulled back and hit us off the road."

Sat 14:36

• SS13: Breen - WRC TV crew reports Breen hit a snowbank hard at 2.7km. Rear left wheel arch damage.

Sat 14:34

• SS13: Meeke update - Driving slowly in the stage with his hazard warning lights on. Tanak has passed him.

Sat 14:32

• SS13: Evans - 14.8sec slower than Ogier. "We had a pretty big spin in there, not ideal. The car is working better now, giving me more confidence. Perhaps a bit too much."

Sat 14:31

• SS13: Tanak - Moving again.

Sat 14:29

• SS13: Ogier - "Not so fun this time. Difficult conditions. The kind of stage where WRC 2 cars are going to be faster than us again."

Sat 14:29

• SS13: Tanak - Reported stopped at 5.1km.

Sat 14:28

• SS13: Meeke update - Now driving slowly in the stage. Rear left damage to car.

Sat 14:27

• SS13: Meeke - WRC TV crew reports big trouble for Kris. Sounds like he went into a snow bank in the opening 2km and lost about 1min 20sec

Sat 14:27

• SS13: Evans - WRC All Live pictures show a spin early in the stage.

Sat 14:22

• SS13: LIVE - Solberg underway

Sat 14:14

• Next stage: 1412hrs - That's Solberg's start time for the Hagfors repeat (SS13)

Sat 13:48

• Ostberg's long jump - Colin's Crest jump distances from SS11: 1.Ostberg :42m. 2.Meeke:40m. 3.Breen:38m. 4.Tänak:32.5m. 5.Ogier:32m. 6.Solberg:31.5m. 7.Lappi:31m. 8.Suninen:31m. 9.Mikkelsen:31m. 10.Evans:30m. 11.Paddon:29m. 12.Neuville: 28m. 13.Latvala:22m. Congratulations Mads!

Sat 13:47

• Sweden WRC2 after SS12 - 1.Katsuta 2h04m23.5s, 2.Tidemand +8.1s, 3.Veiby +11.4s, 4.Arai +49.4s, 5.Adielsson +1m17.4s. Tuohino snow bank delay

Sat 13:38

• SS12: WRC 2 Abbring - He completes with the loss of 6min and it's clear to see he has been off. His fiesta has frontal damage and steam is billowing from under the bonnet. Abbring drives off to investigate.

Sat 13:35

• SS12: WRC2 Abbring - WRC live tracking shows his Ford Fiesta R5 stopped at 16.8km. He had been seventh in WRC 2.

Sat 13:31


Sat 13:29

• SS12: WRC 2 Tidemand - One-tenth slower than Katsuta on stage, and Tidemand remains second in the WRC 2 standings, 8.1sec off the lead.

Sat 13:26

• SS12: WRC 2 Veiby - "I had a good push here, maybe too hard because I went wide in places. It's a hard battle."

Sat 13:24

• SS12: WRC 2 Katsuta - "Good to be back in the lead but it's not easy in these complicated conditions. I tried to push but at the same time I made three mistakes. The feeling was not so good."

Sat 13:23

• SS12: Neuville - 1.3sec slower than Breen, Neuville's rally lead over Breen how just 4.6sec. "An okay run. He has two spare tyres and we have only one. We knew we would lose some because of that but I will have fresh tyres for later in the loop."

Sat 13:21

• SS12: Mikkelsen - Third quickest, 1.4sec slower than Paddon and his Kiwi rival is now just four-tenths adrift in the standings. "A nice fight. One mistake here but other than that a clean stage. The lines in the road from the car in front were crazy, he's pushing hard."

Sat 13:19

• SS12: Paddon - Second quickest. "Better, but it's more difficult today. The rear-wheel-drive cars have created ruts, and I can't place the car where I want to."

Sat 13:16

• SS12: Breen - Quickest so far. "A little bit yee-haa! over the jump. So much fun!"

Sat 13:14

• SS12: Ostberg - Third quickest. "I have a lot of movement. I'm trying my best but I cannot find the right feeling. I don't know what thing to change. I'm looking for the right feeling, but I'm looking for a feeling I cannot find."

Sat 13:14

• SS12: Suninen - 6.3sec quicker than Meeke. "Now it feels a bit better but the conditions are difficult, no ice for the rear tyres and we are sliding about. Can Kris catch me? Let's see."

Sat 13:11

• SS12: Lappi - Quickest so far. "Good, good. A few mistakes, not crazy big ones, otherwise quite a clean stage."

Sat 13:09

• SS12: Latvala - 7.5sec slower than Tanak here and Latvala is now just half a second ahead in the standings. "We had a very bad time. I don't know how Ott can be so quick. An incredible time. I can't stop him. He's doing really well."

Sat 13:08

• SS12: Tanak - Fastest so far. "I'm trying, but the conditions seem to be the same as yesterday. It's very tough. We benefit from a few cars ahead but it's a big problem."

Sat 13:04

• SS12: Meeke - "Suninen is dropping back a bit, so maybe I have the opportunity to take a point here. The roads on this loops will clean a lot. I expect the guys behind will annihilate our times."

Sat 13:03

• SS12: Evans - Quickest through so far and The Welshman is just 8sec behind Ogier in the standings. "The car set-up is better but the conditions are still difficult. The road is improving with every car."

Sat 13:00

• SS12: Ogier - 37.3sec quicker than Solberg here. "We're going to lose a lot of time here. We had some fun this morning at least."

Sat 12:58

• SS12: Solberg - Through in 11m01.9s. "Not easy to drive first - I'm not in this position normally. Ogier told me "you'll see"."

Sat 12:57

• SS12: LIVE - Solberg and Ogier underway.

Sat 12:46

• Next stage: 1244hrs - That's Solberg's start time for the repeat of Torntop. We'll resume our live text service then.

Sat 11:31

• Rally leader: Neuville - "The gearshift problem turned out to be a small electronic issue that we could fix in the car, so I guess we lost only five or six seconds, while we tried to work out what was going on. We had a 360 spin on the second stage but other than that a good morning - we were able to increase the gap a little bit. Not that bad. Breen is trying to push, it's his first opportunity to try and win a rally I think, but I think we can control."

Sat 11:30

• P2: Mikkelsen - "One mistake, the spin, but other than that an okay morning I guess. It could be better. We'll make some changes in service now and hopefully we can come back strong in the afternoon. Yesterday we wanted more precision and we got that today at the expense of grip. Now we have to go back to the other setting and live with it. We have definitely not given up."

Sat 11:26

• P3: Breen - "It's been great again. I'm having fun. It always happens every time I can get a good feeling in the car. The confidence is up and the times just come. It just works and I can drive the way I like to drive. I'm not feeling the pressure too much, but it's there, we're near the head of the rally now."

Sat 11:22

• Up next: Service - Crews are heading back to Torsby for Saturday's midpoint 30-minute service. First car in at 1108hrs.

Sat 10:58

• Sweden WRC2 after SS11 - 1.Katsuta 1h53m51.1s, 2.Tidemand 8.0s, 3.Veiby 9.4s, 4.Arai 53.2s, 5. Tuohino 53.7s. Huttunen loses 4m45s in a snowbank. Arai up to 4th.

Sat 10:55

• Sweden after SS11 - 1.Neuville 1h48m06.3s, 2.Breen +5.9s, 3.Mikkelsen +17.6s, 4.Paddon +19.2s, 5.Østberg +21.5s. Mikkelsen up to third.

Sat 10:47

• SS11: Neuville - Fastest through SS11 and Neuville steadies his rally lead to 5.9sec heading to midpoint service.

Sat 10:43

• SS11: Mikkelsen - Fifth quickest and Mikkelsen retakes third from Paddon.

Sat 10:42

• SS11: Paddon - Seventh quickest. "I felt we lost a lot in here. The car is set-up too aggressively for this stage. I like that set-up and it will be better for the afternoon loop. We have to be patient."

Sat 10:40

• SS11: Breen - Third fastest. "It's been a good morning, I'm just trying to push on. We have a good pace, but I'm looking at the Toyotas coming behind me. For now I'm loving it - 200kph with my best mate by my side."

Sat 10:38

• SS11: Ostberg - A huge jump from Ostberg, who narrowly missed out on taking the award in 2017. He completes fourth quickest.

Sat 10:35

• SS11: Suninen - A very squirrely landing and Teemu takes out the 35 metre jump marker board with his Fiesta. Eighth quickest. "We hit the snow bank a bits, so not a great stage," he acknowledges.

Sat 10:34

• SS11: Lappi - Fourth quickest. "It narrows more than two years ago. At least somebody had taken out the snow bank! A clean stage but teh time is not so good it seems."

Sat 10:32

• SS11: Latvala - A tame jump and Latvala is 5.9sec slower than his team-mate Tanak. He's shaking his head. "I did a big mistake in the first corner - I came far too fast. We used to do it in fifth gear, I did it by memory and went wide. I lost the speed and couldn't get it back."

Sat 10:30

• SS11: Tanak - Quickest so far, three-tenths up on Ogier. "A good stage, really slow and technical. It looks like every car is pulling snow onto the road, its slippery. For me not so bad."

Sat 10:27

• SS11: Meeke - A massive jump from Kris, nudging the 40 metre mark. "A lot of snow banks in here, and it's easy to get caught. A reasonable stage for me, but for sure it will clean. I'm concentrating on the points, that's all I can do."

Sat 10:25

• SS11: Evans - 8.7sec slower than his team-mate Ogier. "Not the best stage for us. We need to keep hoping to find something. It didn't feel like a bad stage but the time is not good."

Sat 10:23

• SS11: Ogier - A shorter jump but a faster stage. Ogier is 22sec quicker than Solberg. "I tried. I had fun in the car, it's a beautiful stage, very clean. I cannot do better with this start position. For sure others will be faster."

Sat 10:22

• SS11: Solberg - The Norwegian first to complete in 08m59.3s

Sat 10:20

• SS11: Solberg - First over the jump and it looked like a good 40 metre flight!

Sat 10:18

• SS11: Snow strike - Solberg and Ogier both rear-swipe the same snow bank on a left-hand corner. No car damage evident.

Sat 10:13

• SS11: LIVE - Solberg underway.

Sat 10:09

• Stage info: SS11 - Vargåsen, 14.21km. Famous for Colin’s Crest – a blind jump 12.8km from the start where fans gather in their thousands. Eyvind Brynildsen set a new record in 2016 with a 45 metre jump, and the biggest leap this season will receive the award named in memory of the late Colin McRae. It begins with an extremely fast 1.8km section where the brake pedal will not be required, before becoming more flowing and full of crests and curves.

Sat 10:07

• Next stage: 0908hrs - And it's the rally's signature test: Vargåsen

Sat 10:06

• Colin's Crest - Coming up!

Sat 10:05

• Sweden WRC2 after SS10 - 1.Katsuta 1h44m53.2s, 2.Veiby +5.3s, 3.Tidemand +6.5s, 4.Huttunen +18.8s, 5. Tuohino +41.9s. Katsuta retakes the lead

Sat 10:04

• Sweden after SS10 - 1.Neuville 1h39m30.4s, 2.Breen +4.2s, 3.Paddon +14.2s, 4.Mikkelsen +14.4s, 5.Østberg +16.6s. Spin drops Mikkelsen from 2nd to 4th

Sat 09:59

• SS10: WRC 2 Update - All change at the top again. Overnight leader Katsuta retakes the lead he lost on SS9. Veiby is second with Tidemand third. Just 6.5sec covers the top three.

Sat 09:56

• SS10: WRC 2 Veiby - "I had a good stage. Loose snow at the start but the end was good. I'm happy."

Sat 09:54

• SS10: WRC 2 Katsuta - "Okay, this is much better than the first one. I made one mistake in a snow bank otherwise quite okay."

Sat 09:53

• SS10: Neuville - Seventh quickest and Neuville keeps the lead by 4.2sec from Breen. "The transmission is working, I fixed it, but I had a spin in the stage - a 360 degree. There was nothing I could do to avoid it, I'm pretty sure Andreas destroyed a snow bank in front of me."

Sat 09:53

• SS10: Mikkelsen - 18.5sec off the pace. What happened? "I had a spin, maybe lost 15 sec. I touched the bank a bit, I had to reverse. Not good." He drops from second to fourth in the standings.

Sat 09:49

• SS10: Paddon - Seventh quickest, and Paddon sits 10sec behind Breen's third place in the standings. "Struggling to find the line between underdriving and overdriving."

Sat 09:48

• SS10: Breen - Fourth quickest. "Okay, difficult to judge what speed you're at in the car. We'll see how it is."

Sat 09:45

• SS10: Ostberg - 8.7sec slower than Tanak. "Horrible. I struggled with the confidence and I don't know why. We have made some changes but there's nothing more I can do before service."

Sat 09:43

• SS10: Suninen - 36sec slower than Latvala. "That was a bad stage for me - I spun."

Sat 09:41

• SS10: Lappi - Third quickest. "I'm just too careful. I'm trying to stay out of the banks and it seems it's not enough. I can see the cars ahead are using them. I'm not brave enough."

Sat 09:39

• SS10: Latvala - 4.3sec slower than his team-mate Tanak and sounding rattled. "Ott is going very, very fast at the moment. I'm running as hard as I can - I need to think about what I can do."

Sat 09:37

• SS10: Tanak - Quickest so far. 7.8sec up on Meeke. "Maybe not such good conditions as the previous on, but reasonably okay. Overall quite enjoyable today."

Sat 09:35

• SS10: Meeke - Quickest so far. "Really nice. Conditions are much more consistent today. I just try to enjoy it, not much more for us to do."

Sat 09:33

• SS10: Evans - 6.3sec slower than Ogier and Evans slips behind Ogier to 12th in the standings. "I still didn't feel massively comfortable. The balance in the car is changing from oversteer to understeer. We'll keep working on it."

Sat 09:32

• SS10: Ogier - 35.1sec quicker than Solberg. "It was narrow, a bit more fresh snow, but okay. No problem for us."

Sat 09:29

• SS10: Solberg - "It seems to be okay. Not easy to be first on the road, but if the car is okay, then I am flat out."

Sat 09:28

• SS10: LIVE - Solberg underway. Neuville stopped on the road section to work on his Hyundai. He is now driving to the stage start.

Sat 09:15

• Stage info: SS10 - Hagfors 1, 23.40km. An extended version of a well-known stage. The opening half was last driven four years ago before it joins up with last year’s test. It has a spectacular finale as, after negotiating a series of fast, flowing corners, competitors burst into view in front of thousands of fans on the Värmullsåsen ski slope. A set of tight downhill hairpin bends leads into a big jump before the finish at the bottom of the hill on the edge of Hagfors.

Sat 08:46

• Next stage: 0912hrs - That's Solberg's start time for Hagfors

Sat 08:45

• Sweden WRC2 after SS9 - 1.Tidemand 1h31m07.6s, 2.Veiby +5.4s, 3.Katsuta +5.7s, 4.Huttunen +19.2s, 5. Tuohino +37.1s. Tidemand takes the lead

Sat 08:45

• SS9: WRC2 Update - Katsuta loses his overnight category lead in Saturday's opener. Stage winner Tidemand moves up to first place and Veiby also squeezes by to move second. Katsuta is three-tenths behind in third.

Sat 08:42

• Sweden after SS9 - 1.Neuville 1h26m22.9s, 2.Mikkelsen +5.2s, 3.Breen +8.8s, 4.Paddon +14.1s, 5.Østberg +17.2s. Neuville gear shift issue

Sat 08:39

• SS9: Neuville - He completes fifth quickest and WRC All Live onboard cameras show Neuville using the manual shift in his Hyundai - not the steering wheel paddles. Neuville's rally lead is now 5.2sec over Mikkelsen, with Breen 3.6sec further back in third. "It was okay. We have to go now - no issue," Neuville says at the stop line. Shortly after he punches the steering wheel in frustration.

Sat 08:33

• SS9: Mikkelsen - Fifth quickest. "A clean stage, no problems, just trying to get into a good rhythm. It's a long day, just need to drive and keep the concentration high."

Sat 08:29

• SS9: Paddon - 5.8sec slower than Breen and the pair swap places in the standings. "Okay, fair play they've done a good stage. Maybe I was too cautious. Nothing to worry about, we can push on in the next one. Our set up works better on the repeated stages."

Sat 08:27

• SS9: Breen - Second quickest, 4sec off Tanak's leading pace. "An really awesome feeling in the car, it's sticking! The notes are a little slow in places but we'll keep on throwing the kitchen sink at it."

Sat 08:25

• SS9: Ostberg - Fourth quickest. "A really fast stage but I didn't manage to get a good rhythm. The car felt good, it was more me. I'm a bit disappointed in myself."

Sat 08:22

• SS9: Suninen - Sixth fastest and looking downcast. "We had some problems." Car problems? "Ah. Maybe the driver."

Sat 08:21

• SS9: Lappi - Third quickest. "I think it was okay. I just try to keep it on the clean line where there is grip. Third fastest? That's not good enough. I don't want to push harder and hit the banks."

Sat 08:18

• SS9: Latvala - Jari-Matti fans relax - it looks like the opening split time was a rogue one. He completes second quickest so far. "Better rhythm than yesterday, there's lots of grip, a really enjoyable stage to drive."

Sat 08:17

• SS9: Tanak - Quicker than Meeke by 15.6sec. "Conditions are lot better than yesterday, the road is cleaning really nicely, in a normal way, consistent grip."

Sat 08:14

• SS9: Meeke - Quickest so far. "Only three cars to beat at the moment, but okay. Better conditions, a lot better than yesterday, more consistent grip. I don't feel I have the speed to challenge the leaders, my only aim is to take a point off Ogier."

Sat 08:13

• SS9: Latvala - Latvala almost a minute down at the first split. Tracking shows him up to speed again now.

Sat 08:11

• SS9: Evans - "Better confidence for sure, different conditions to yesterday."

Sat 08:10

• SS9: Ogier - "There is not so much we can catch in a regular fight now. I enjoyed this stage though, I celebrated my win with the Polo here in 2013."

Sat 08:09

• SS9: Solberg - First to complete. Henning reveals he had engine concerns on Friday.

Sat 08:07

• SS9: LIVE - Solberg, Ogier and Evans in stage

Sat 08:01

• Stage info: SS9 - Torntorp, 19.88km. A blast from the past! The popular Torntorp is back with flat-out action through forests, open fields and meadows. There is plenty of snow in here and good snow banks into which drivers can ‘lean’ their cars. It’s pace and beautiful scenery make it a classic among drivers and fans alike.

Sat 07:52

• SS9: Standby - WRC+ live tracking shows cars gathering at the start control. Start time for Solberg: 0754hrs

Sat 07:51


Sat 07:50

• Running order - Reverse rally classification order today, and that gives Henning Solberg the dubious honour of leading the cars through. Here's how the top world rally car runners will line up: 1. Solberg, 2. Ogier, 3. Evans, 4. Meeke, 5. Tänak, 6. Latvala, 7. Lappi, 8. Suninen, 9. Ostberg, 10. Breen, 11. Paddon, 12. Mikkelsen, 13. Neuville.

Sat 07:50

• Weather - Full snow conditions across Saturday's stages. No fresh snowfall last night. A dry day forecast with clearing skies. Temperature between -2°C and -5°C.

Sat 07:47

• Stage live times - SS9: 0754hrs. SS10: 0912hrs. SS11: 1008hrs. SS12: 1244hrs. SS13: 1412hrs. SS14: 1508hrs. SS15: 1745hrs. SS16: 1926hrs

Sat 07:47

• Saturday's vital stats - Start: 0705hrs. Number of stages: 8. Stage distance: 120.31km. Finish: 2041hrs

Sat 07:46

• Look out for... - The highlight of today's action is Colin’s Crest jump in the Vargåsen stage, where crews try to record the furthest distance. The current record is 45 metres, set by Norwegian Eyvind Brynildsen at the wheel of a Ford Fiesta R5 in 2016

Sat 07:42

• Saturday's itinerary 2/2 - The final two stages of the day will be the shorter 1.90km Super Special in Karlstad, first run on Thursday evening, and the 3.43km Torsby Sprint.

Sat 07:42

• Saturday's itinerary 1/2 - Eight stages will be contested today, including a repeat loop of the 19.88km Torntorp, 23.40km Hagfors and 14.21km Vargåsen stages.

Sat 07:42

• So, what's happening? - Day two, that's what. A second full day of flat-out snow stage action, this time based entirely in Sweden.

Sat 07:38

• We're live - On wrc.com and the WRC app, providing text updates from today's stages

Sat 07:38

• Morning all - And welcome back to our live text coverage of Rally Sweden

Sat 07:38

• Until then - Keep an eye on wrc.com for all the latest news, and don't forget the WRC All Live service on WRC+ for loads of exclusive extras. Bye for now.

Fri 18:02

• Join us on Saturday - When the rally resumes in the forests of Sweden. We'll be here from 0754hrs, when the action kicks off with the Torntorp stage. Will Hyundai maintain its 1-2-3?

Fri 18:01

• Leaders through - And that's where we'll end our live text coverage today.

Fri 18:00

• Sweden JWRC after SS8 - 1.Bergkvist 1h26m42.9s, 2.Rådström +6.7s, 3.Torn +20.8s, 4.Tannert +1m34.9s, 5.Franceschi +2m40.3s

Fri 18:00

• Sweden WRC2 after SS8 - 1.Katsuta 1h20m21.5s, 2.Tidemand +4.0s, 3.Veiby +7.2s, 4.Huttunen +12.6s, 5. Tuohino +32.2s

Fri 17:46

• Sweden after SS8 - 1.Neuville 1h16m13.1s, 2.Mikkelsen +4.9s, 3.Paddon +12.1s, 4.Breen +12.6s, 5.Østberg +13.2s. Stage winner Paddon moves up to third position

Fri 17:44

• SS8: WRC 2 Arai - "The surface was polished and we went off close to the start. Today the throttle on my car has not been so happy, we stopped in Rojden twice. Quite a tough day for us but getting better and better."

Fri 17:41

• SS8: WRC 2 Katsuta - Third quickest and that's an overnight lead of 4sec for the Japanese youngster. "Today was quite a good one. A few mistakes but otherwise it went well. Tomorrow I need to calm down and stay on the road. I have more to learn but I want a good result too."

Fri 17:40

• SS8: WRC 2 Huttunen - "Quite nice, slippery and very funny to drive. My first time here and I need to learn."

Fri 17:37

• SS8: WRC 2 Veiby - 2.7sec slower than Tidemand here, keeping him 3.2sec adrift in the standings. "Disappointing to lose time here, the stage was very messy, but overall pleased with the day."

Fri 17:36

• SS8: WRC 2 Tidemand - "It will be a good fight tomorrow. I was pushing in here. The fight is on. We continue like this."

Fri 17:34

• SS8: Al Rajhi - "A good day. A small problem maybe, we go to the service to see."

Fri 17:33

• SS8: Solberg - "It's not been my best day but I'm happy. I am improving but I need to find out how much I can push this car."

Fri 17:30

• SS8: Ostberg - "Wow. Lines on the road off in every direction, I don't understand how anyone got to the end of this one. Considering I've had just over half a day of testing in this car I am very pleased to be here on this pace."

Fri 17:27

• SS8: Paddon - Fastest so far for Hayden - and that moves him ahead of Breen into third. Delight and surprise from the Kiwi who he thought he had worn out his studs on the previous stage.

Fri 17:25

• SS8: Suninen - "Not really good. We lost our light pod in here. Today would have been okay, but I was hoping for more. I need more kilometres to find a good rhythm."

Fri 17:23

• SS8: Breen - His car has a damaged front splitter. "I followed some lines near the start, went into a bank and nearly fell off the road. A very tricky stage. Not a bad day. I can't wait to get my teeth into it again tomorrow."

Fri 17:22

• SS8: Mikkelsen - One-tenth slower than Neuville. "Okay, I'm pretty happy with the day. Clean driving and a good pace. Looks like we have a job on tomorrow, to fight for the win."

Fri 17:18

• SS8: Lappi - Second quickest. "Quite messy. Very messy. A lot of lose snow and the guys ahead have gone everywhere. I'm impressed they have not got stuck in the ditches. This is going to be an interesting Power Stage."

Fri 17:16

• SS8: Evans - "Glad to get it over with. A tough day for sure. We need to have a rethink tonight and come out fighting tomorrow."

Fri 17:14

• SS8: Neuville - Quickest so far for the rally leader. "I try to give my best, the car is working well. It's not easy, I'm fighting with the guys behind. I try to get the speed without taking risks."

Fri 17:13

• SS8: Meeke - "These are not the conditions in which to build confidence. We're not too far behind the pace of Latvala, but I don't have the confidence to push hard."

Fri 17:11

• SS8: Latvala - Another driver unable to overcome the effect of his road position. "I was hoping to be stronger but there is no chance. Even here I tried but it was very messy."

Fri 17:09

• SS8: Tanak - 6.1sec quicker than Ogier here and it looks like ninth overnight for Ott. "A very difficult day, I'm not sure I've had anything like this for a long time.

Looking at the times, I've had no ability to drive at all. It's not nice, but we need to accept it. There will be a next rally. The car is nice but the road position is not in our favour."

Fri 17:08

• SS8: Ogier - 6m47.2s. 11th place tonight and that's the end of a very difficult day for Seb. "Not much I could do today, for sure," he says.

Fri 17:05

• SS8: LIVE - Darkness falling now and Ogier is underway with full lights on.

Fri 16:59

• Stage info: SS8 - Torsby 1, 9.56km. A mix of new roads and some last used three years ago, before a popular spectator area into the finish. Although the roads are narrow and bumpy, they are fast and tricky and among those to have fallen foul of this stage are Sébastien Ogier, Jari-Matti Latvala and Ott Tänak. The final 3km run alongside Torsby airfield service park, and before the last section near a ski centre is a rallycross-style arena with plenty of fast bends and a jump.

Fri 16:47

• Next stage: 1656hrs - That's Ogier's start time for today's final stage, Torsby.

Fri 16:46

• Sweden WRC2 after SS7 - 1.Katsuta 1h13m38.4s, 2.Tidemand +5.8s, 3.Veiby +6.3s, 4.Huttunen +13.3s, 5. Tuohino +23.3s

Fri 16:45

• Sweden after SS7 - 1.Neuville 1h09m46.4s, 2.Mikkelsen +4.8s, 3.Breen +5.4s, 4.Østberg +10.4s, 5.Paddon +15.0s. Stage winner Breen moves up to third position

Fri 16:36

• SS7: Al Rajhi - "A lot of rough in the last few kilometres. We enjoy but it's a difficult rally this year."

Fri 16:33

• SS7: Solberg - "I enjoyed it. It's fast and good and there is a great atmosphere in the stages now. Neat and tidy."

Fri 16:31

• SS7: Ostberg - 5.6sec slower than Breen on stage and Mads slips behind to fourth position in the standings. "I need to make changes to the car to be competitive, it doesn't feel good and I need to take risks on my set-up. I made quite a big change and I could really feel it. I'm not sure if it was better or not."

Fri 16:28

• SS7: Suninen - Cleanly through, sixth quickest.

Fri 16:25

• SS7: Paddon - "The road position is helping us. It's always the same for me in Sweden, I struggle on the first pass on Friday and get better on the second. One stage to go and then a big push tomorrow."

Fri 16:25

• SS7: Breen - Another terrific time for the Irishman who is knocking on a podium position. Fastest here, 2.2sec up on Neuville. "Not a clean run. I struggled a bit to get the same rhythm. Not too happy but I'm trying. It's pure class out on these stages."

Fri 16:21

• SS7: Mikkelsen - "It was a clean stage. We have another notch to go if we need it."

Fri 16:18

• SS7: Lappi - Third quickest and his car back to full power after his overshoot in SS6. "I think everything is fine. Just snow in the air filter."

Fri 16:17

• SS7: Evans - Fifth quickest, his car missing its rear bumper. "Difficult enough. So slippery off line. Trying to keep in the ruts."

Fri 16:14

• SS7: Neuville - Quickest by 13.7sec. "I'm fighting with the guys behind, trying to do the best in the conditions I have and fight for victory. It's tricky because sometimes I'm making a faster line to the benefit of the guys behind."

Fri 16:13

• SS7: Meeke - "You just take the running order, reverse it and they're the times. That said, I don't have the pace of Thierry Neuville behind. I was cautious on the first stage, after that I've done what I could."

Fri 16:11

• SS7: Latvala - Quickest so far. "More difficult conditions than we have seen here for years."

Fri 16:09

• SS7: Tanak - 31sec quicker than Ogier, and eager to apologise for his earlier comments about stage conditions. "I need to say sorry to the organisers about what I said about the ploughing. We are sportsmen, trying to do our best, anyway, I'm sorry."

Fri 16:09

• SS7: Ogier - He completes in 10m57.0s and there's front end damage to his Fiesta. What happened? "Nothing, all good." But your splitter is missing? "It can happen," he says, before shutting the door and driving off.

Fri 16:05

• SS7: Ogier - Ogier has lost time between 2km and 8km. He's dropped about 23sec to Tanak.

Fri 16:02

• SS7: LIVE - Straight across to the repeat of Röjden. Ogier in stage.

Fri 15:53

• Sweden after SS6 - 1.Neuville 59m38.1s, 2.Mikkelsen +1.0s, 3.Østberg +7.0s, 4.Breen +7.6s, 5.Paddon +10.8s. Lappi slips to 7th after overshoot

Fri 15:49

• SS6: Solberg - "It's okay, but the ruts are very big now. We try."

Fri 15:47

• SS6: Ostberg - Sixth fastest. "I cannot find any confidence with the car. I'm fighting against it and cannot find a rhythm. Same as the stage before."

Fri 15:43

• SS6: Paddon - Third quickest, 2.9sec slower than Breen. "Very pronounced ice ruts in the road, very hard to read. Compared to the previous stage I had to pull it back a little bit."

Fri 15:40

• SS6: Breen - "Tricky, like Cool Runnings you just get in the ruts and go."

Fri 15:36

• SS6: Mikkelsen - Quickest so far but at the finish control he jumps straight out for a look around his car. "I felt in the last 5km I had a puncture. The car felt really strange."

Fri 15:35

• SS6: Lappi - 36sec off the pace. He completes with snow stuffed into the front grille of his Yaris. What happened? "We went wide in a junction into the snow and blocked the air filter. No grip on the braking. That's it. The engine is down on power now."

Fri 15:34

• SS6: Evans - 19.3sec off the pace. What happened? "It was going better but I spun and it spat us into a snow bank and I had to reverse."

Fri 15:31

• SS6: Neuville - Quickest so far, and no sign of damage to his Hyundai. "Another good lap, but we have to see the times of the guys behind. They're going to use my lines and go faster I think."

Fri 15:29

• SS6: Meeke - 4.6sec "Whoa. A couple of big, big moments. Not through trying too hard. Sometimes it sticks, sometimes it doesn't. Not easy."

Fri 15:27

• SS6: Latvala - Quickest of the three to complete. "We are going to lose time now, it's incredible how much the road is cleaning and getting better. We will lose time, but it's like this. We do the best we can."

Fri 15:25

• SS6: Tanak - 7.9sec quicker than Seb, and with a similar opinion of his position in the running order. "Terrible. Nothing else to say. That's just how it is. Sometimes we have some hard days."

Fri 15:24

• SS6: Ogier - Safely through in 13m52.8s and Ogier is fuming. "Just a joke," is all he'll say before driving off.

Fri 15:21

• SS6: Neuville - WRC TV crew reports right rear damage to Neuville's Hyundai.

Fri 15:19

• SS6: LIVE - Ogier underway.

Fri 15:06

• Stage info: SS6 - Svullrya 2, 24.88km. Fast and flowing from the start with plenty of inviting corners to challenge drivers. It contains a mix of wide flowing roads and narrower forest tracks, while the big Furumo jumps just before the midpoint throw cars high into the air. Driven in this direction for the first time last year.

Fri 14:42

• Next stage: 1503hrs - That's Ogier's start time for the repeat of Svullrya. Reminder stage notes coming up.

Fri 14:41

• Sweden WRC2 after SS5 - 1.Katsuta 48m57.5s, 2.Tidemand +2.7, 3.Veiby +7.1s, 4.Huttunen +8.1s, 5. Tuohino +16.3s. Second stage win for Katsuta

Fri 14:40

• Sweden after SS5 - 1.Neuville 46m16.7s, 2.Lappi +2.1s, 3.Mikkelsen +2.2s, 4.Østberg +6.3s, 5.Breen +11.7s

Fri 14:26

• SS5: Solberg - Carrying a 20sec penalty for late arrival at the stage. "We had some problems in the service park but all is okay. I'm doing the best I can."

Fri 14:20

• SS5: Ostberg - Fifth quickest. "A lot of gravel appearing now, and maybe I was too hesitant in the new car. I also wanted to look after my tyres in the gravel."

Fri 14:17

• SS5: Paddon - An incredible time, quickest so far by 4.2sec. "The first half was really, really good and I could drive exactly how I wanted. The road is cleaning and we have to make the most of that. I struggled more in the last five kilometres."

Fri 14:14

• SS5: Suninen - "I was struggling a lot with the rear - difficult to keep it in the ruts."

Fri 14:11

• SS5: Breen - Now Breen goes fastest, one-tenth up on Lappi. "Bloody tricky but good fun! I'll throw the kitchen sink at it, If I have fun the times always come!"

Fri 14:10

• SS5: Mikkelsen - Second quickest. "A good stage from Lappi. We had a good ride too. Now we must continue."

Fri 14:07

• SS5: Lappi - Quickest, and he's now just 2.1sec off the rally lead. "Sounds good. Quite surprised. I felt that I didn't have grip, there was a lot of gravel, it felt more slippery than this morning. In these conditions if you push hard, no chance. You have to be slow, slow."

Fri 14:06

• SS5: Evans - Second quickest!

Fri 14:04

• SS5: Neuville - Quickest by 11.6sec. "We had a good stage but I never know about the rhythm. The grip was good at the beginning but not at the end. We know we have quite a [road position] advantage."

Fri 14:02

• SS5: Meeke - Second quickest, just 1.3sec slower than Latvala. "When I have a rut to follow I don't need the chassis working, so when it's like this I can attack a bit more. But when it's smooth I struggle. My only target now is to say ahead of Ogier."

Fri 14:00

• SS5: Latvala - 2.7sec quicker than his team-mate Tanak. "A lot better than before but still difficult. I didn't remember driving on the line being so difficult. The line is very narrow and there is lots of loose on the side."

Fri 13:58

• SS5: Tanak - 6.2sec quicker than Seb. "It's really bad, a lot worse than the morning. Quite a big struggle but that's what we have. We have to cope."

Fri 13:56

• SS5: Ogier - He completes with a weak smile. How was it? "Conditions were even worse. It's the same story every year. Following a national rally? Impossible."

Fri 13:54

• SS5: Super slippy - WRC All Live Helicam shows Ogier absolutely on the limit. Lots of fishtailing around the sweeping corners, the rear end being kept in check by snowbanks.

Fri 13:53

• SS5: Condition update - The road surface looks very different from earlier. Dark lines in the snow now after the passage of the WRC, national and historic rally competitors.

Fri 13:44

• SS5: LIVE - Ogier is underway. His car fitted with a new gearbox in service.

Fri 13:42

• Next stage: 1341hrs - That's Ogier's start time for the repeat loop. We'll take a live text break until then.

Fri 11:43

• Service: Lappi - "My position in the road order is good - a bonus of my mistake at the Monte Carlo Power Stage! For sure the guys ahead suffered on the last two stages. This afternoon they won't suffer so much."

Fri 11:42

• Service: Ostberg - "I'm quite comfortable where I am. The speed is nice, I just struggled a bit with the feeling of the car - like everyone I think. I'm quite pleased

with our result so far. I tried to enjoy but it's hard, I'm nervous in every corner. This afternoon I need to keep the pressure on."

Fri 11:37

• Service: Breen - "It's been good, the conditions are beautiful. A lot of fun and when I'm having fun things seem to go well for us. A really nice feeling with the car, like driving through a big white tunnel at 200kph. There's not a lot to be complaining about. We made a few mistakes, so we could be nearer to the front, but all good so far."

Fri 11:33

• Service: Mikkelsen - The Norwegian swapped seats with his co-driver for the trip to service, so he could review his onboard camera footage of the morning loop. "We could have pushed more but then the risk would be higher. We felt our way on the first stage, added more on the second, and then on the third we pushed and got the fastest time. I'm happy with the progression."

Fri 11:28

• Service: Tanak - Still furious about the amount of snow left by Rally Sweden's plough on SS4. "There was a lot more snow, and I guess they were playing to help the local drivers, wanted us to lose time - and we lost a lot. Not so nice, but that's life. A conspiracy? I don't know, but it was never clean for us. I'm sure R2 cars would be faster in that section. It wasn't handled in a good way but that's how it is. The afternoon loop will be very important for our road position on Saturday."

Fri 11:24

• Service: Neuville - "A good morning. With our road position we knew we could be faster than the guys ahead, but we didn't expect to be faster than the guys behind. A good battle with Andreas. This afternoon a similar story I think. We're going to try to be consistent and fast."

Fri 11:17

• Service Meeke: - "Lost the confidence a bit on the first stage today, I lost the rear a few times. It took me a while to bed myself in, the second and third stages were better and better."

Fri 11:14

• Service: Ogier - "A bit like I expected, we know you can't do much on fresh snow. I didn't do any mistakes, apart from a stall on the second stage, so that's an extra 4 sec, I don't know. On the last stage, there was like 10cm of snow on the road, far too much and I lost there. Not much I can do. I tried as hard as I could. On the second loop I expect no surprises. Following the national rally I expect to lose a lot. It will be hard to look at the classification tonight I think."

Fri 11:09

• Sweden WRC2 after SS4 - 1.Katsuta 38m02.9s, 2.Veiby +1.1, 3.Tuohino +1.3s, 4.Tidemand +2.6s, 5. Huttunen +2.9s.

Fri 11:03

• Up next: Service - Cars still filtering through SS4, but the leaders are on their way back to Torsby for the midday 30-minute service break. Ogier's arrival time: 1131hrs.

Fri 10:43

• Sweden after SS4 - 1.Neuville 35m49.7s, 2.Mikkelsen +3.7s, 3.Lappi +5.3s, 4.Østberg +7.4s, 5.Breen +15.0s

Fri 10:37

• SS4: WRC 2 Tidemand - "Not easy. We need to clean the road a bit for the R5 cars because the track width is not the same [as the WRC cars]"

Fri 10:35

• SS4: Solberg - 46sec off Mikkelsen's leading pace. "The stage was very good but I don't feel very comfortable in the car. I will fix it in service and come back better next time."

Fri 10:33

• SS4: Ostberg - Fourth quickest. "It's tricky to learn the car in conditions like this. I did my best, for sure there is room for improvement. I just have to learn with every metre."

Fri 10:29

• SS4: Paddon - "This last section is very tricky, with more snow. There's a bit of a line, but its a bit like tobogganing - push too hard, get out of the line and you're in trouble."

Fri 10:28

• SS4: Suninen - "Better driving, and now I try to push a bit more. Tight competition here in Sweden."

Fri 10:24

• SS4: Breen - "Really hairy. At one left-hander near the end I had the steering right over on the stops."

Fri 10:23

• SS4: Mikkelsen - Quickest, 1.9sec up on his Hyundai team-mate Neuville. "A good morning. This stage was tricky towards the end. The front runners definitely have a disadvantage. I'm not pushing to the max. So far so good."

Fri 10:22

• SS4: Lappi - "Not so good, I lost the rhythm, I hit something on the line in the middle of the stage. Front right - bang. I was sure I had a problem, a puncture or a broken wheel."

Fri 10:20

• SS4: Evans - He completes 1m37sec slower than Neuville. What happened? "In a really fast place there was a black clump on the inside of a corner. Never seen it before. No idea how it go there. A big surprise."

Fri 10:18

• SS4: Evans - We're riding with the Welshman on WRC All Live and he's in trouble - his Fiesta has a right-rear puncture.

Fri 10:17

• SS4: Neuville - Quickest. "I took it a bit more carefully, lots and lots of snow. The road is getting better with each car, so I tried to use my advantage."

Fri 10:15

• SS4: Meeke - His C3 has a broken right front wheel. "In a straight line I hit something on the right-hand side. I thought it was a puncture. It's like this when there is so much snow - it can hide something."

Fri 10:14

• SS4: Latvala - Quickest, 2.4sec up on Tanak. "Quite okay, but the last six kilometres had not been ploughed very well. Almost aquaplaning in the conditions, very tricky at this end."

Fri 10:11

• SS4: Tanak - 28sec quicker than Ogier. "The organisers can screw themselves. No plough for the last six kilometres. Deep snow. It was already unfair to be first on the road here."

Fri 10:10

• SS4: Ogier - A shrug of the shoulders, and Ogier isn't in the mood for questions. How was it? "It's normal for a Sweden winter."

Fri 10:08

• SS3: WRC 2 Abbring - Reckons he lost about 15sec with a pace note mistake.

Fri 10:00

• SS3: WRC 2 Arai - Third quickest in WRC 2, despite missing a junction and having to reverse.

Fri 09:58

• Stage info: SS4 - Röjden, 19.13km. A classic stage used many times in national rallies. It starts in Sweden and crosses into Norway for 12km before returning to Sweden again. The stage offers a mix of fast and slower roads, with few junctions but an exceptionally tricky jump in the middle. Driven in the same format as last year but with a new 650 metre section at the finish.

Fri 09:57

• SS4: LIVE - Straight over to Friday's third stage now. Ogier began it on schedule at 0854hrs.

Fri 09:56

• Sweden after SS3 - 1.Neuville 25m29.3s, 2.Tänak +2.7s, 3.Lappi +4.3s, 4.Mikkelsen +5.6s, 5.Østberg +7.1s

Fri 09:55

• SS3: WRC 2 Pieniazek - "One big moment where we almost went off."

Fri 09:53

• SS3: WRC 2 Veiby - "Not easy out there but it's going good. I'm trying to get a rhythm now."

Fri 09:52

• SS3: WRC 2 Tidemand - "An okay rhythm, but not perfect. It's been a long time since our last rally in GB. We improve a bit here, we'll keep going."

Fri 09:51

• SS3: Al Rajhi - "Everything works okay, need to build up experience, having fun in the snow."

Fri 09:49

• SS3: Solberg - "I lost time in the end there, the car just started sliding, that's how it is. We'll have a look in service."

Fri 09:48

• SS3: Ostberg - Fifth quickest. "Quite tricky, not a lot of grip. I struggled with braking and traction. I was fighting in there in a few places because it was difficult to stop for the corners."

Fri 09:45

• SS3: Paddon - "It's the same as the first one, you have to keep in the line, and I'm struggling to get the front end in. We will make some set-up changes to help the confidence."

Fri 09:43

• SS3: Suninen - "It was okay. A lot of grip. Better, but everyone is improving. "

Fri 09:40

• SS3: Breen - Fourth quickest. "Trying to keep it really clean and tidy and neat. No mistakes. We're in the ballpark. We keep fighting."

Fri 09:38

• SS3: Mikkelsen - Third fastest, "It was okay, you can push hard and gain time if you are prepared to take risks. There's a long way to to, so I'm happy with my drive."

Fri 09:36

• SS3: Lappi - "A much better stage"

Fri 09:34

• SS3: Evans - Struggling to determine where the grip is.

Fri 09:33

• SS3: Neuville - Fastest through so far, 9.2sec quicker than Latvala: "I enjoyed every moment. I think the time is good."

Fri 09:31

• SS3: Meeke - "Just driving my rally, I can see the lines in the road ahead, but I just don't have the confidence."

Fri 09:29

• SS3: Latvala - Quickest so far, 1sec up on Tanak. "Getting better. The first stage was difficult and now I've started to get the rhythm."

Fri 09:26

• SS3: Tanak - 9.9sec quicker than Ogier. "A lot worse than the previous one. A lot of loose snow on the top. Very tough."

Fri 09:24

• SS3: Ogier - He completes in 13m36.5s. "Not good. First we stalled on the start line, then there is more fresh snow on the line here than the first one."

Fri 09:22

• SS3: Splits watch - Four cars have reached the 5.92km split [in the 24.88km stage]. Tanak is quickest, with Latvala and Meeke +0.6s and Ogier +4.9s

Fri 09:17

• Stage info: SS3 - Svullrya, 24.88km. It is fast and flowing from the start with plenty of inviting corners to challenge drivers. It contains a mix of wide flowing roads and narrower forest tracks, while the big Furumo jumps just before the midpoint throw cars high into the air. Driven in this direction for the first time last year.

Fri 08:57

• Next stage: 0907hrs - That's Ogier's start time for Svullrya. Stage notes coming up.

Fri 08:56

• Sweden WRC2 after SS2 - 1.Katsuta 12m46.2s, 2.Veiby +2.4, 3.Abbring +6.2s, 4.Arai +9.4s, 5. Tidemand +9.8s.

Fri 08:55

• SS2: WRC 2 Ahlin - "We had a spin in here, lost 10 or 15sec. The engine feels a bit down on power, we'll go and take a look."

Fri 08:47

• Sweden after SS2 - 1.Tänak 12m05.4s, 2.Østberg +6.8s, 3.Mikkelsen +7.0s, 4.Neuville +7.5s, 5.Latvala +9.8s

Fri 08:45

• SS2: WRC 2 Arai - Third fastest in WRC 2. "It's okay. I got stuck in a snowbank and lost some time."

Fri 08:41

• SS2: WRC 2 Katsuta - Quickest so far in WRC 2. "I really enjoyed this stage. My feeling was quite good. no mistakes."

Fri 08:40

• SS2: WRC 2 Huttunen - "I'm not so happy. We need to improve something."

Fri 08:39

• SS2: WRC 2 Pieniazek - "Really really tricky. We were off a couple of times, just little hits with the snow banks."

Fri 08:38

• SS2: WRC 2 Veiby - 7.5sec quicker than Tidemand. "Wow. That's a surprise, actually. I didn't think I had a good run. Better for the guys behind I think."

Fri 08:37

• SS2: WRC 2 Tidemand - "Okay. A bit careful but we are here with no mistakes. Now we work from here."

Fri 08:36

• SS2: Al Rajhi - 1m16s off the pace and his Fiesta sounds odd. "No problem, I just don't know what the noise is," says Yazeed.

Fri 08:34

• SS2: Solberg - 45sec off the pace. "It was okay. I took it steady. I wanted to get through this loop. Not fast, but I want to get through."

Fri 08:32

• SS2: Ostberg - Third quickest, 6.2sec slower than stage leader Tanak. "Really tricky conditions, maybe I was too careful. I lost time at the end, I was slower there. I had a few moments near the start and I felt like I needed to take it down a bit."

Fri 08:30

• SS2: Paddon - Eighth quickest. "Difficult. Once you are off the ice strips there is no grip at all. In this light it's hard to see."

Fri 08:27

• SS2: Suninen - Fourth quickest. "Not the best one, struggling to find the braking points and apexes."

Fri 08:25

• SS2: Breen - Sixth quickest, slower than expected based on his early split times. What happened? "I went straight in a junction and then sucked into a snow bank."

Fri 08:24

• SS2: Mikkelsen - Second quickest, 6.1sec off Tanak's pace and Andreas's car is missing its rear bumper. Is he using the snow banks? "A little bit here and there, the grip is tricky - up and down. Not an easy stage."

Fri 08:22

• SS2: Lappi - Third quickest, 8sec slower than Tanak, and Lappi looks cross. "It could have been better but okay, I'm still here. The roads is getting cleaner for the guys behind. An okay start but not so good."

Fri 08:20

• SS2: Evans - Slowest so far. "The road is getting messy now, lots of different lines. I tried to be neat and tidy but it's difficult to know where to push."

Fri 08:18

• SS2: Neuville - Second quickest so far, 6.5sec slower than Tanak. "In some places more grip and suddenly you lose it. Not the perfect stage for visibility, I was looking for the road a lot. Not a good rhythm."

Fri 08:16

• SS2: Meeke - Slowest through so far, 17.5sec off Tanak's pace. Problem? "Just a bit too cautious, any time I got the rear wheels out of the line. That's what I expected."

Fri 08:14

• SS2: Latvala - 9.5sec slower than Tanak. "We didn't have a good run compared to him. I thought we were doing okay but it was slippery and I didn't have the confidence. I don't trust the car in conditions when there is loose snow on the top."

Fri 08:12

• SS2: Tanak - 12.5sec quicker than Ogier. "The car feels good but there is a lot of loose snow on the top near the start. On the ice the car feels good. Ogier's lines are everywhere - he's pushing harder than I am."

Fri 08:10

• SS2: Ogier - First to complete, and the driver to face the worst of the fresh snow. "Difficult. There has been no snow plough in the road. I try my best, but there were a couple of moments. It's difficult."

Fri 08:08

• Tyres - Not a tricky call this morning. All Michelin WRC drivers have the same package of five X-Ice North 3 tyres, each carrying 384 metal studs.

Fri 08:06

• SS2: LIVE - Ogier underway.

Fri 07:56

• Stage info: SS2 - Hof-Finnskog, 21.26km. Narrow and winding roads in hilly areas mix with long straights and open landscapes, bringing all the challenges of a winter rally to one stage. It is fast throughout with plenty of quick corners but several bumps which will require care. Used for the first time 12 months ago and driven in the same format this time round.

Fri 07:55

• SS2: Standby - WRC+ live tracking shows cars gathering at the start control. Ogier's start time: 0655hrs. Stage notes coming up.

Fri 07:54


Fri 07:52

• Running order - Championship order today, and that means Sébastien Ogier will be first through. Here's how the top world rally car runners will line up: 1. Ogier, 2. Tänak, 3. Latvala, 4. Meeke, 5. Neuville, 6. Evans, 7. Lappi, 8. Mikkelsen, 9. Breen, 10. Suninen

Fri 07:52

• Stage live times - SS2: 0755hrs. SS3: 0907hrs. SS4: 0954hrs. SS5: 1341hrs. SS6: 1503hrs. SS7: 1550hrs. SS8: 1656hrs.

Fri 07:49

• Weather - Still perfect for this rally. Best conditions for 20 years, some locals are saying. There is full snow across Friday's stages, and more fell on Thursday night and Friday morning. Light snow falling now in Torsby, the temperature is -2°C. More light snow forecast today.

Fri 07:48

• Friday's vital stats - Start: 0600hrs. Number of stages: 7. Stage distance: 140.1km 9 (longest leg of the rally). Finish: 1816hrs

Fri 07:44

• Friday's itinerary 2/2 - After that, crews will tackle the 9.56km Torsby test, which will be repeated on Sunday as the Power Stage, before final service and an overnight halt in Torsby.

Fri 07:44

• Friday's itinerary 1/2 - The action is focused on a loop of three stages, Hof-Finnskog (21.26km) Svullrya, (24.88km) and Röjden (19.13km) which are run in the morning and then repeated after a midday service.

Fri 07:44

• So, what's happening? - After Thursday night's Super Special, Friday is where the rally really begins. Today offers a full day of competition in two countries with much of the action held over the border in Norway

Fri 07:41

• We're live - On wrc.com and the WRC app, providing text updates from today's snowy stages

Fri 07:41

• Good morning - And welcome back to our live text coverage of Rally Sweden, round two of the 2018 World Rally Championship

Fri 07:41

• Until then - Keep an eye on wrc.com for all the latest news, and don't forget the new 'All Live' service on WRC+ for loads of exclusive extras. Bye for now.

Thu 21:19

• Join us on Friday - When the rally resumes in the forests of Sweden and Norway. We'll be here from 0755hrs, when the action kicks off with the Hof-Finnskog stage.

Thu 21:19

• Leaders through - And that's where we'll end our live text coverage today

Thu 21:18

• Sweden JWRC after SS1 - 1.Rådström 1m48.6s, 2.Bergkvist +0.1, 3.Torn +0.9s, 4.Tannert +3.0s, 5. Folb +4.0s.

Thu 21:16

• Sweden WRC2 after SS1 - 1.Tidemand 1m36.8s, 2.Veiby +0.1, 3.Abbring +0.4s, 4.Ahlin +1.1s, 5. Huttunen +1.4s.

Thu 21:11

• Sweden after SS1 - 1.Tänak 1m32.7s, 2.Latvala +0.3s, 3.Østberg +0.6s, =4.Meeke +0.9s, =4.Mikkelsen +0.9s. Top five separated by less than 1sec!

Thu 21:05

• SS1: Mikkelsen vs Ogier - The headline duel goes Mikkelsen's way by 1.6 seconds after a surprisingly rough start for Ogier who ends the leg in ninth position. "Not a good stage, I didn't drive well. A bad start but okay, we will try to do better tomorrow," he says. Mikkelsen ends Thursday in fifth place. "It feels very nice to be back at Sweden in a rally car and not as a reporter like last year - this is where I belong," he says.

Thu 20:57

• SS1: Latvala vs Ostberg - Mads slots third quickest on his world rally car return with Citroen. "Okay, this was the first stage in the car and I don't have a lot of feeling. I need to learn more. I was quite nervous in here, afraid of making a stupid mistake. I'm glad to get it over," he says. Latvala wins the heat, three-tenths quicker than Ostberg. "It would be great to be able to fight for the victory but there are many good drivers. Tomorrow we will start and I hope I will wake up in a good mood."

Thu 20:53

• SS1: Tanak vs Neuville - Now Tanak bags fastest time. "We will try to fight, this is one of my favorite events and especially this year with the snow conditions. Whatever, we will push hard, tomorrow is the key." Neuville, who crashed out of the lead on this stage last year, slots third quickest.

Thu 20:49

• SS1: Meeke vs Evans - Meeke goes quickest so far: "I never went well in this super special, I'm sure the others will go faster but the car felt surprising good in here. Tomorrow will be a different rally, if the snow comes tonight it will be a challenge."

Evans says: "The best winter conditions I have seen since 2014. An exciting rally in prospect."

Thu 20:46

• SS1: Lappi vs Paddon - Paddon sets a new fastest time. He says: "It felt like a long time away so it's good to be back. This is a good way to shake off the cobwebs. We'll give it a good push tomorrow." Lappi says: "I hope I can manage the same way as Monte Carlo - except the next stage. I didn't feel so comfortable on the shakedown, I hope tomorrow's stages will be better suited for us."

Thu 20:43

• SS1: Suninen vs Breen - Breen goes quickest so far, with Suninen just two-tenths behind. Breen says: "Okay, a little bit of a surprise with the rear again in some places, but I'm ready to go and play in the snow tomorrow." Suninen says: "Nice to be back in this car. It's difficult to find the rhythm in this class."

Thu 20:40

• SS1: Solberg vs Al Rajhi - Henning Solberg wins the first of the world rally car pairings in a 2018-spec Fiesta. It's his 19th Rally Sweden. "I'm going to put on a show - it's a serious job. I hope it will be good weekend," he says. Al-Rajhi slots 12th quickest in his 2016-spec Fiesta.

Thu 20:37

• SS1: Abbring vs Huttunen - Abbring wins the heat, and slots third quickest overall in a Hyundai i20 R5. "Just the second time I see snow with a rally car," says Kevin. "My first time with Hyundai 2015. It's a privilege to be back."

Thu 20:34

• SS1: Katsuta vs Arai - Back to R5-spec cars now and Ford Fiesta driver Hiroki Arai wins this all-Japan heat in the fifth fastest time. His rival, Takamoto Katsuta says: "I was very excited for this rally. We went well on the recce. Looking forward to the proper rally start tomorrow."

Thu 20:31

• SS1: Torn vs Radstrom - Torsby resident Dennis Radstrom wins the heat, and is the fastest Junior driver so far.

Thu 20:28

• SS1: Folb vs Bergkvist - The first two Junior WRC drivers are through cleanly in their Fiesta R2s. Emil Bergkvist says: "It's important that you get a good start here. It's my home rally and I'm very grateful to everyone who has helped me. The car feels good." Terry Folb says: "This is my first rally in Sweden and I don't have a lot of experience. A podium would be a good result."

Thu 20:26

• SS1: Berg vs Stugemo - Another two Skoda Fabia drivers. Berg and Stugemo complete seventh and eighth fastest respectively.

Thu 20:23

• SS1: Tuohino vs Adielsson - Another Skoda battle, and Tuohino comes out on top, although Tidemand is still quickest so far. "When I saw the times this morning I thought okay - let's try and get the podium here!" Adielsson says: "It feels really good in the car - a great package. I've done only 250km in this car but I'm ready for this rally."

Thu 20:20

• SS1: Veiby vs Ahlin - Ole Christian Veiby wins the second all-Skoda battle with Fredrik Ahlin. "Really fun to see all the spectators out here, I really enjoyed it, clean through" says Veiby.

Thu 20:16

• SS1: Pontus vs Johan - Tidemand wins! So that's WRC: 1 WRX: 0. "Absolutely fantastic here - good to beat Johan. Now we focus on the rally tomorrow," says Pontus. Johan says: "A lot of fun, this place is where I'll feel the most comfortable in the rally! Nice to drive against Pontus here - very good."

Thu 20:13

• SS1: Live - And the first duel is between 2017 WRC 2 champion Pontus and 2017 WRX champion Johan Kristoffersson - both in Skodas

Thu 20:09

• SS1: Standby - WRC+ live tracking shows cars heading to the start line. A huge fireworks display is overhead. Start time for Kristoffersson and Tidemand: 2008hrs

Thu 20:07

• Stage info: SS1 - SSS Karlstad 1, 1.90km. Sweeping bends, a spectacular jump and a great atmosphere are the hallmarks of Karlstad’s horse trotting track. Drivers tackle two laps of the ice-based roads in head-to-head duels.

Thu 20:01

• SS1: Running order - A special order for tonight. Swedish favourites Johan Kristoffersson and Pontus Tidemand will go first, followed by the WRC 2 runners, a handful of Junior WRC drivers and then the world rally cars.

Thu 20:00

• Weather - The weather got the winter rally memo this year and there is full snow across the route. Perfect conditions for Rally Sweden. Down in Karlstad it's overcast and windy with a temperature of -1°C. Not too bad for the spectators, and ideal for tonight's stage. More fresh snowfall forecast tonight until 0800hrs on Friday.

Thu 19:55

• Thursday's vital stats - Start: 2004hrs. Number of stages: 1. Stage distance: 1.9km. Finish: 2154hrs

Thu 19:37

• Thursday's itinerary 2/2 - After that, crews will drive 102km north to an overnight parc fermé in Torsby. First car due to check in at 2154hrs.

Thu 19:37

• Thursday's itinerary 1/2 - Just the one test this evening, the 1.9km Super Special Stage Karlstad. First car on stage at 2004hrs. The world rally car runners will be along from 2028hrs.

Thu 19:37

• So, what's happening? - Thursday began with Shakedown, which was topped by Hyundai's Thierry Neuville. After that, crews headed south in readiness for tonight's short opening stage in Karlstad.

Thu 19:36

• We're live - On wrc.com and the WRC app to bring you text updates from the stages of this week's snow spectacular

Thu 19:32

• Good evening texters - And welcome to our live text coverage of Rally Sweden, round two of the 2018 World Rally Championship

Thu 19:32

• Rally Sweden 2018 - Watch our Preview Magazine show on wrcplus.com

wrc.com – rally sweden livetext 2018€¦ · wrc.com – rally sweden livetext 2018 • until...

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