Rally Portugal organisers have opened an investigation to understand why two unauthorised vehicles entered a live stage forcing organisers to red flag the test.
The second pass through the famous Arganil stage was halted after two separate incidents where unauthorised vehicles had entered the stage while it was live.
The first incident occurred when Toyota’s Elfyn Evans, who was first into the stage, came across dust towards the end of the 18.62km test. As Evans continued it became clear that the dust was being caused by a tow truck that had entered the stage. The truck pulled off just as Evans caught the vehicle.
The incident delayed the championship leader, who was handed notional time by the organisers, recovering 4.4s in the process. Evans’ team-mate Oliver Solberg also reported that he had a near-miss with a police officer that was standing in the road.
Officials were then forced to red flag the stage several minutes later when a car entered the stage, which was caught rapidly by Lancia WRC2 driver Yohan Rossel.
“I can explain what happened from my perspective. It was really bad dust initially but when I finally caught up to it I couldn’t really believe what was driving in front. I have had no explanation yet,” said Evans.
“Obviously it [an incident like this] can’t happen at any level let alone this level.”
Yohan Rossel, Arnaud Dunand, Lancia Corse HF Lancia Ypsilon Rally2 HF Integrale
Photo by: McKlein Photography / LAT Images via Getty Images
Rossel was equally surprised to encounter a car during the stage.
“I don’t know [what happened]. I saw the dust and immediately 300 metres later I saw a Dacia car. It seems to be the same place as [what happened to] Evans,” said Rossel.
The Rally Portugal organising committee has since confirmed that a full investigation into the matter is underway.
“The Arganil 2 stage began today at 12:30 PM, witnessed by thousands of enthusiastic spectators following the event,” read a statement from the Rally Portugal organisers.
“Despite the security measures being fully operational, two unauthorised vehicles entered the stage without permission. These vehicles were incorrectly identified by some media outlets as belonging to the GNR.
“This situation, the circumstances of which are currently being investigated, led to the decision being taken by the organisation to interrupt the stage as the safety of everyone involved in the WRC Vodafone Rally de Portugal remains the top priority.”
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– The Autosport.com Team
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