Thierry Neuville secured a crucial victory in one of the toughest Acropolis Rallies in recent years, bolstering his World Rally Championship (WRC) title aspirations after rival Sébastien Ogier rolled his car on the final stage.
WRC points leader Neuville, along with co-driver Martijn Wydaeghe, claimed their second win of the season, finishing 1 minute and 36.8 seconds ahead of Hyundai teammate Dani Sordo. Ott Tänak completed the podium in third place, 2 minutes and 57.3 seconds behind, marking a surprising Hyundai 1-2-3 finish. Neuville’s main title rival, Ogier, was on course to finish second, but his hopes were dashed when he rolled his Toyota GR Yaris during the drama-filled final stage.
Eight of the nine Rally1 crews faced significant challenges over the three days of competition, leaving a major impact on the title race.
Neuville's path to victory, starting first on the road, was not without its difficulties. His Hyundai i20 N ran on only three cylinders during Friday's first three stages, leaving him 45.2 seconds behind in third position by the end of the day.
Ogier, competing as a part-time driver, was the fastest on Friday, leading the field before a turbo failure struck at the end of stage five. The eight-time world champion lost more than two and a half minutes, effectively ending his chance of victory.
This handed Tänak a brief lead, which he held heading into Saturday. However, the 2019 world champion encountered his own difficulties, suffering two punctures on stage seven that forced him to stop and change wheels, costing him more than four minutes and dropping him to fourth overall.
Sordo then inherited the rally lead but soon hit trouble himself, encountering a rock that caused a puncture in stage nine. The right-rear tire of his i20 N delaminated, tearing a hole in the bodywork and adding to the event's high attrition rate.
The event's high attrition rate saw Sami Pajari, winner of the WRC2 class, finish an impressive fourth overall. Pajari's victory came under dramatic circumstances: a left-front puncture on the final stage left him and rival Robert Virves with identical overall times. Pajari secured the win due to his superior performance on the first stage. Virves, who was only competing in Greece due to a successful crowdfunding campaign, finished just behind.
Toyota title contender Elfyn Evans experienced a major setback on the opening stage when he struck a rock, causing a puncture. A turbo failure similar to Ogier’s further hampered Evans' chances, leaving him nearly 10 minutes behind. A rut on stage 11 led to a slow roll, ending his day prematurely. Evans managed to salvage eight points by finishing third in both the Power Stage and the Sunday rankings.
Evans’ Toyota teammate Takamoto Katsuta initially ran as high as second after winning stage two but retired on Friday following an impact on stage three. Although Katsuta rejoined the rally on Saturday, he spun and picked up a puncture on the final stage.
For M-Sport-Ford, it was a challenging weekend. Adrien Fourmaux had a promising start, trailing then leader Ogier by just 5.9 seconds at Friday's midday service. However, a small rock on stage four damaged his Puma’s steering, and repairs were unsuccessful. Fourmaux ended the rally with 11 points after winning the Power Stage and finishing second in the Sunday rankings.
Stablemate Grégoire Munster delivered one of his best performances of the season, sitting fifth before running into a ditch on stage nine, which damaged his Puma’s roll cage.
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