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A dramatic Saturday morning at the World Rally Championship propelled Oliver Solberg into the overall lead of Rally Italia Sardegna. The Toyota driver overhauled Thierry Neuville at the top of the standings while trimming championship leader Elfyn Evans' advantage down to just four points.
Solberg started the day 12.3 seconds behind overnight leader Neuville in his Hyundai. Producing a blistering run, the Swede claimed two of the three morning stages to build a 2.7-second lead heading into the afternoon loop.
The rally and championship battle took an immediate twist on the day's opening 24.14-kilometre 'Lerno - Sa Conchedda - Monti di Ala' stage. Hyundai's Adrien Fourmaux entered Saturday trailing team-mate Neuville by just 0.4 seconds, but his hopes of a maiden WRC victory were dashed by a front-left puncture.
The Frenchman opted against stopping to change the wheel, nursing the car to the stage finish at the cost of over a minute.
"I have nothing to say," a devastated Fourmaux said at the stage end.
The puncture dropped the Hyundai driver down to fifth overall, allowing Solberg to collect crucial championship points over Evans, who was running behind Fourmaux.
Solberg quickly set his sights on wiping out Neuville's advantage. On Stage 9, Oliver showcased sensational pace to win the test and take 11.1 seconds out of the Belgian's lead, moving within 3.3 seconds of top spot.
Despite his blistering pace, Solberg described his run as "horrible" and insisted he had more to give. Neuville remained composed, noting that the rally is long and the atmosphere inside the team remains calm.
Solberg pressed on with his charge through Stage 10, taking another six seconds out of Neuville to sensationally claim the rally lead.
"It is really exciting. This is why we are here. We are doing the maximum. As I said at the start, everything is possible and I will fight until the end," Solberg said.
Following Fourmaux's setback on Stage 8, reigning world champion Sébastien Ogier climbed to third position. Ogier completed the morning loop 17.4 seconds clear of a recovering Fourmaux, who managed to reclaim fourth from title contender Sami Pajari on Stage 9.
Pajari settled in fifth, with the Finn acknowledging he had maximised his chances despite an unfavourable road position.
"I am not giving up or slowing down. We need to see what is possible. It seems impossible to match the times set behind us with the road cleaning," Pajari commented.
Championship leader Elfyn Evans suffered a similar fate, unable to reel in the front-runners due to the disadvantage of sweeping the road.
"The fight is somewhat out of my hands because of the heavy road cleaning. Realistically, there is no way to catch the guys ahead, so for now I just have to keep it clean," Evans explained.
Josh McErlean held on to seventh place as the lead M-Sport Ford driver, while Toyota's Takamoto Katsuta moved up to eighth. M-Sport drivers Jon Armstrong and Martins Sesks rounded out the top ten.
Hyundai's Dani Sordo returned under restart rules on Saturday following his Stage 7 crash on Friday, but his comeback was short-lived. Still in severe discomfort from a heavy impact in Thursday's shakedown, the Spaniard chose to retire to the service park after Saturday's opener.
"I cannot drive like this. The pain is really bad. When braking, I feel like something is broken. I couldn't drive. I have severe pain in my back and side," Sordo explained.
Crews will repeat the three morning stages following the midday service break.
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