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The opening stage of Rally Paraguay proved to be an unexpectedly brutal test for both factory drivers and WRC2 crews, including Bulgarian driver Nikolay Gryazin (Lancia).
The first casualty was Takamoto Katsuta (Toyota), who rolled his car just 1.7 kilometers into the "Cambyreta 1" stage (24.65 km). The Japanese driver had been fastest in the shakedown but was forced to retire from the rally early on. He is expected to rejoin tomorrow under Super Rally regulations.
Then came the punctures: Sébastien Ogier suffered a rear-left puncture, Thierry Neuville also had a rear-left puncture along with suspension damage, and in WRC2, it became an epidemic.
Championship leader Robert Virves went off the road and stopped at the same spot where Katsuta crashed. Gryazin, Fabrizio Zaldivar, and Yuki Yamamoto all suffered punctures. Another strong contender, Alejandro Cajon, rolled his car, and Gryazin lost a bit more time when he stopped to check on his main rival from Rally Japan and his co-driver to ensure they were unharmed.
Oliver Solberg set the fastest time in the first stage, followed by Adrien Fourmaux at 3.1 seconds back and Hayden Paddon at 4.8 seconds.
Today's Rally Paraguay schedule includes 8 stages, with the final stage kicking off at 11:18 PM our time.
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