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Thierry Neuville set the pace in the final shakedown of the Rally1 era ahead of Rally Italia Sardegna, while Oliver Solberg emerged as the fastest of the championship contenders.
One of Elfyn Evans, Sami Pajari, or Solberg will be crowned World Rally Champion for the first time in Sardinia, with the Mediterranean event serving as the season finale following the cancellation of the rally in Saudi Arabia.
Evans enters the decisive weekend holding a 17-point lead over Pajari and a 21-point cushion over Solberg. However, the Welshman faces the toughest road conditions on Friday as he sweeps the gravel tracks, provided the weather remains dry as forecast.
On the opening pass, widely considered the most representative run, Evans clocked only the seventh-fastest time. Pajari suffered an even tougher start, dropping behind two Rally2 entries after being forced to stop mid-stage due to heavy dust kicked up by Evans, which severely hindered visibility.
"There was so much dust, and I hope it won't be that bad during the rally itself, otherwise I won't have a chance. It's going to be a thrilling contest. We will give it everything we've got. We still have a fighting chance in the title race and we're looking ahead with confidence," Pajari said.
The Finn ultimately recovered to post the sixth-quickest time overall, ending up 2.2 seconds behind Evans, who finished fourth.
Championship rival Oliver Solberg showcased impressive speed throughout the session. After setting the fourth-fastest time on the opening run, he climbed to second overall, finishing just a tenth of a second behind pacesetter Neuville.
"It's going to be incredibly tight. Winning the title is a tall order, but anything is possible. I took 20 points out of Elfyn's lead in the previous round, and now I'm only 21 behind. There will be plenty of road cleaning here, so we'll see how it unfolds," Solberg commented.
Dani Sordo, making his competitive return for the first time since June's Acropolis Rally in Greece, suffered an unfortunate mishap. The Spaniard carried too much speed into a tight right-hander, sliding off the road and striking a tree with the rear-left of his Hyundai. Although he managed to complete the run, heavy damage to the rear suspension ruled him out of further attempts.
Hyundai's Adrien Fourmaux concluded the session in fifth place, trailing third-placed Takamoto Katsuta and world champion Sébastien Ogier.
Evans ended up 2.2 seconds off the top in sixth, just three-tenths behind teammate Ogier. M-Sport Ford's Mārtiņš Sesks slotted in between Evans and Pajari. Sesks admitted he felt slightly rusty after a two-month layoff, but emerged as the fastest Puma driver, beating Josh McErlean by 2.4 seconds after McErlean had surprised with the second-fastest time on the opening pass. Jon Armstrong rounded out the top ten, finishing half a second behind McErlean.
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