Mazzocchi heads Clio Trophy field on home soil

The Italian driver heads championship leader Soria by 10.9ec in the one-make Renault Clio Rally5 series after a shortened opening day, which saw two stages cancelled due to incidents further up the field.

Argentine Soria initially led after Friday evening’s super special stage and held onto the top spot throughout the morning. 

However, a big push from Mazzocchi in the monster Santopadre - Fontana Liri stage moved the local driver in front overnight. Soria could clinch the title this weekend - although it’s highly unlikely given the current standings. 

Giorgio Cogni completed the leading trio 18.6sec behind Soria. He had 27.5sec in hand over Sergio Fuentes, while Patrik Herczig and Ghjuvanni Rossi completed the leaderboard. 

Turkish driver Emre Hasbay had been running as high as fifth overall before going off the road on SS7. He is expected to restart on Sunday. 

• Full coverage from Rally di Roma Capitale is available on WRC+ All Live here, including every stage broadcast as it happens as well as key interviews, features and expert analysis from the service park.