Wales Rally GB: Kris Meeke fourth after Saturday's stages
- Published
The slippery conditions in Wales have proved to be tricky and caught out several leading drivers
Toyota's Kris Meeke is in fourth place after Saturday's stages at Wales Rally GB.
The Northern Irishman, who led for the majority of Friday's stages before slipping to third, was passed in the order by Thierry Neuville on Saturday's opening loop.
Meeke put in a consistent run to maintain fourth behind Neuville, Sebastien Ogier and leader Ott Tanak.
Five stages remain on Sunday in the Welsh forests.
The front three reflect the story of the World Rally Championship season, wit Toyota's Tanak leading by 11 seconds from Hyundai's Neuville and Citroen's Ogier.
Meeke is comfortably ahead of Hyundai's Andreas Mikkelsen, who in turn is in front of home hero Elfyn Evans, who won the rally in 2017.
Waterford's Craig Breen is ninth after a roll on the morning loop.
"I gave it everything today but we were just a few seconds off the pace on every stage," said Meeke on his Instagram page.
"It's not too bad as we are only eight seconds from Seb (Ogier).
"It was a long day in the office and the plan for tomorrow is just to keep the same rhythm and see how it goes."
Josh McErlean won the Junior British Rally Championship with a round to spare
There was heartbreak for Kilrea driver Josh McErlean, who was forced to withdraw from the event after failing to solve the mechanical issues which had plagued his Hyundai R5.
The 20-year-old was making his debut in the WRC after winning the Junior British Rally Championship, and set some top-20 times against some of the top R5 drivers in the world on his first Rally GB appearance.
Omagh co-driver Aaron Johnston also suffered disappointment as he and highly-rated youngster Oliver Solberg retired for the second time in as many days .
After a broken wheel forced the crew out on Friday, Solberg and Johnston set the fastest WRC2 time on stages 11 and 12 before they were forced to pull over on the following run.
Solberg, 18, and Johnston are expected to rejoin the rally on Sunday as they aim to gain experience on the slippery Welsh terrain.