Jon Armstrong & Shane Byrne’s Rally Croatia is over after running into trouble during the first four stages this morning.
In a chaotic start to the fourth WRC event of the season, championship leader Elfyn Evans and Oliver Solberg were both forced to withdraw after big offs.
Evans went off heavily after misjudging a right-hander, ending his charge in dramatic fashion and opening the door for those behind.
It came just one stage after Solberg’s rally had already ended on the opening stage with the Swede spinning and beaching his GR Yaris Rally1 off the road after clipping a bank.
Armstrong and Byrne had been one of the standout performers early on, running as high as third after SS1 and staying in the fight despite a puncture on SS2, but the Enniskillen-Donegal duo’s rally ended on SS4 when they ran wide at high speed and hit a bank.
Finnish driver Sami Pajari currently leads Rally Croatia after a hectic morning.
Takamoto Katsuta, with Omagh’s Aaron Johnston on the notes, is 8.4 seconds off the pace of Pajari in 2nd spot.
Belgian Thierry Neuville is third, while Derry’s Joshua McErlean is going well in his Ford Puma and occupies fifth spot.
