Third on the V-Híd
Rally Hungary season opener last month, Johansson snatched first place from
Timo Schulz in the Hankook-equipped category when he went quickest through SS4.
And the 19-year-old Swede didn’t
stop there as he also set the pace on the remaining three stages of the day
aboard his IKSport Racing-run Opel Corsa Rally4.
Calle Carlberg, Johansson’s compatriot, is
second with Germany’s Timo Schulz third in the second ADAC Opel Rally Junior
Team entry.
“We started the morning quite carefully and
were picking up more speed,” said Johansson, who was fifth after SS2. “But we’re
leading so it’s great.”
Carlberg feared he’d damaged his front-left
tyre on SS2 but completed the run with only a bent wheel rim.
“We learning a lot,” Carlberg said. “It’s
our first rally on Tarmac in a Rally4 car so it’s very new. It’s a proper rally
car and I have to get used to it.”
Peugeot-powered Max McRae, the round one
winner for TRT Rally Team, is fourth on only his fifth Tarmac start with Daniel
Polášk in fifth, Patrik Herczig sixth and Liam Müller in seventh.
“Top five is a fine place to be,” said
McRae. “We’re definitely looking at the long run for the rally and the
championship. And it’s our first time here and I have low experience on Tarmac
compared to the other guys. I’m happy enough.”
Karl-Markus Sei, who is making his debut on
Tarmac, is eighth with Aoife Raftery ninth for the Motorsport Ireland Rally
Academy and Aleksandar Tomov completing the top 10 in his HRT Racing Peugeot.
There was frustration for Davide Pesavento,
who was second fastest on SS2 but failed to complete SS6 after he crashed on a right-hander having been hampered by a powersteering issue on SS5.
Geronimo
Nerubutto, in the second Delta Rally-run ACI Team Italia Peugeot, crashed heavily on SS5. And with this car suffering significnat rear-left damage, Nerobutto will be a non-starter on leg two.
Mattia Zanin went from hero to zero after
driveshaft failure at the start of SS2 put the overnight leader out for the
day.
Jack Brennan rolled his Motorsport Ireland
Rally Academy-entered Peugeot on SS2 and won’t restart on leg two, which begins
with the 9.41km Arucas – Firgas test from 09:17 local time.
Finland
Italy
Hungary