The 2018 Rally Mexico (formally known as the Rally Guanajuato Mexico 2018) was a motor racing event for rally cars that was held over four days between 8 and 11 March 2018. It marked the fifteenth running of Rally Mexico, and was the third round of the 2018 World Rally Championship and its support categories, the WRC-2 and WRC-3 championships. The event was based in the town of León in Guanajuato, and was contested over twenty-two special stages totalling a competitive distance of .
Kris Meeke and Paul Nagle were the defending rally winners. Sébastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia were the rally winners. Their team, M-Sport Ford WRT, were the manufacturers' winners. The Škoda Motorsport crew of Pontus Tidemand and Jonas Andersson won the World Rally Championship-2 category in a Škoda Fabia R5. In the World Rally Championship-3, there were no classified finishers.
Background Championship standings prior to the event Thierry Neuville and Nicolas Gilsoul entered the round with a ten-point lead in the World Championship for Drivers and Co-drivers. In the World Championship for Manufacturers, Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT held a one-point lead over Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT.
Entry list The following crews were entered into the rally. The event was open to crews competing in the World Rally Championship, World Rally Championship-2, and the World Rally Championship-3. The final entry list consisted of eleven World Rally Cars, seven World Rally Championship-2 entries, and one World Rally Championship-3 entry.
No. Entrant Driver Co-Driver Car Tyre World Rally Car entries 1 M-Sport Ford WRT Sébastien Ogier Julien Ingrassia Ford Fiesta WRC 2 M-Sport Ford WRT Elfyn Evans Daniel Barritt Ford Fiesta WRC 3 M-Sport Ford WRT Teemu Suninen Mikko Markkula Ford Fiesta WRC 4 Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT 5 Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT Thierry Neuville Nicolas Gilsoul Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC 6 Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT Dani Sordo Carlos del Barrio Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC 7 Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT Jari-Matti Latvala Miikka Anttila Toyota Yaris WRC 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT Ott Tänak Martin Järveoja Toyota Yaris WRC 9 Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT Esapekka Lappi Janne Ferm Toyota Yaris WRC 10 Kris Meeke Paul Nagle Citroën C3 WRC 11 Sébastien Loeb Daniel Elena Citroën C3 WRC World Rally Championship-2 entries 31 Škoda Motorsport Pontus Tidemand Jonas Andersson Škoda Fabia R5 32 Jari Huttunen Antti Linnaketo Hyundai i20 R5 33 Škoda Motorsport Kalle Rovanperä Jonne Halttunen 35 Ford Fiesta R5 36 Nil Solans Nil Solans Miquel Ibañez Sotos Ford Fiesta R5 37 Motorsport Italia Benito Guerra Borja Rozada Škoda Fabia R5 38 Gus Greensmith Gus Greensmith Craig Parry Ford Fiesta R5 39 Pedro Heller Pedro Heller Pablo Olmos Ford Fiesta R5 World Rally Championship-3 entries 61 Tom Williams Tom Williams Phil Hall Source:
Route After starting in Mexico City in 2017, 2018 Rally Mexico returned to its traditional start in Guanajuato. The route featured minor changes and included a new Power Stage.
Report Pre-event
The event marks the return of nine-time world champion Sébastien Loeb and is his first rally since the 2015 Monte Carlo Rally.
Thursday Thursday saw Thierry Neuville topped his Hyundai i20 after Kris Meeke took the shakedown. Ott Tänak was second on the timesheets, 1.9 seconds slower than the championship leader's storming run. Defending world champion Sébastien Ogier was third, 2 seconds off the lead. Toyota teammates, Jari-Matti Latvala and Esapekka Lappi, and Norwegian Andreas Mikkelsen completed the top six. Last year winner Meeke was seventh overall, followed by Dani Sordo and Elfyn Evans. Nine-time world champion Sébastien Loeb finished his first special stage after 2015 with tenth position.
Friday Dani Sordo, who targeted himself for a podium finish, led nine-time world champion Sébastien Loeb by 7.2 seconds after two days. Both drivers benefited from low start positions in the sweltering mountain speed tests above León. Ott Tänak, 11 seconds off the pace in third, drove around overheating problems in his Toyota Yaris, ahead of last year winner Kris Meeke. Defending world champion Sébastien Ogier limited his losses from second in the start order in fifth place, despite a spin. Norwegian Andreas Mikkelsen was sixth, only 1.5 seconds behind the Frenchman. It was a nightmare catastrophe for championship leader Thierry Neuville. The road opener fared worst in the conditions and lost more than 20 seconds due to a fuel pressure problem and a power steering issue in his i20. He placed seventh overall when Jari-Matti Latvala retired with alternator problems before SS9. Elfyn Evans retired from the rally because of rolling out though he managed to reach the finish line, while teammate Teemu Suninen and Esapekka Lappi retired from the day due to hitting a barrier and crashing respectively. WRC 2 leader Pontus Tidemand, Gus Greensmith and Pedro Heller completed the top ten.
Saturday Nine-time world champion Sébastien Loeb took an early lead from Dani Sordo, who finished third after the day, until he suffered a front left puncture. The 44-year-old Frenchman conceded almost two and a half minutes when he stopped to change the wheel after hitting a stone in his Citroën C3 and plunged to fifth, while defending world champion Sébastien Ogier took over the lead position with four consecutive stage wins in the afternoon. Teammate Kris Meeke was over half a minute off the pace, second place overall. Ott Tänak's overnight third vanished in the opening stage. The Estonian limped through the second half with a turbo boost problem in his Toyota Yaris and retired soon after, which made Andreas Mikkelsen and championship leader Thierry Neuville climb up to fourth and sixth respectively. WRC 2 leader Pontus Tidemand was seventh, ahead of category second Gus Greensmith. Jari-Matti Latvala returned to the rally after the previous day's alternator-induced retirement. The Toyota leader finished ninth, while Chile's Pedro Heller completed the leaderboard.
Sunday
Sébastien Ogier sealed his forty-second career victory, despite receiving a 10-second penalty for cutting a chicane.Ogier stripped of Mexico Power Stage bonus points motorsport.com, 12 March 2018 By virtue this win, he recaptured the position of championship leader from Thierry Neuville, who had a terrible weekend and finished sixth overall. Kris Meeke lost second place to Friday leader Dani Sordo after a half roll this morning. Andreas Mikkelsen finished fourth, a further 19.2 seconds behind, after struggling with his i20's handling throughout. Nine-time champion Sébastien Loeb was fifth and took an extra point at the Power Stage. WRC 2 winner Pontus Tidemand finished seventh ahead of Jari-Matti Latvala, who fought back onto the leaderboard after retiring his Toyota Yaris on Friday with alternator problems. WRC 2 drivers Gus Greensmith and Pedro Heller completed the top ten. Ott Tänak finished fourteenth overall, but he took full five points from the Power Stage.
Classification Top ten finishers The following crews finished the rally in each class's top ten. Position Driver Entrant Car Time Points Event Class Class Stage Overall classification 1 11 3:54:08.0 0.0 25 0 2 26 3:55:11.6 +1:03.6 18 0 3 310 3:55:27.2 +1:19.2 15 0 4 44 3:55:46.4 +1:38.4 12 2 5 511 3:56:32.6 +2:24.6 10 1 6 65 4:03:11.0 +9:03.0 8 3 7 731 4:04:32.7 +10:24.7 6 0 8 87 4:04:32.7 +15:37.1 4 4 9 938 4:11:17.3 +17:09.3 2 0 10 10 39 4:18:26.1 +24:18.1 1 0 World Rally Championship-2 7 131 4:04:32.7 0.0 25 — 9 238 4:11:17.3 +6:44.6 18 — 10 3 39 4:18:26.1 +13:53.4 15 — 13 4 35 4:27:18.6 +22:45.9 12 — 15 5 33 5:07:26.8 +1:02:54.1 10 — 18 6 32 5:24:46.5 +1:20:13.8 8 — 21 7 36 5:52:32.8 +1:48:00.1 6 — World Rally Championship-3No classified finishers Source:
Other notable finishers The following notable crews finished the rally outside top ten.
Position Driver Entrant Car Class Time Points Event Class Stage 11 11 9 Janne Ferm 4:25:05.8 0 12 12 3 Teemu Suninen M-Sport Ford WRT Ford Fiesta WRC 4:27:14.3 0 14 14 8 Ott Tänak Martin Järveoja Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT Toyota Yaris WRC 4:56:50.8 5 Source:
Special stages Overall classification Day Stage Name Length Winner Car Time 8 March — Llano Grande [Shakedown] 5.31 km 3:41.0 SS1 Street Stage GTO 2.53 km 2:06.7 9 March SS2 Duarte - Derramadero 1 26.05 km 17:08.9 SS3 El Chocolate 1 31.44 km 24:05.6 SS4 Ortega 1 17.23 km 9:33.2 SS5 Street Stage Léon 1 1.11 km 1:03.7 SS6 Duarte - Derramadero 2 26.05 km 16:56.7 SS7 El Chocolate 2 31.44 km 23:54.2 SS8 Ortega 2 17.23 km 9:24.8 SS9 SSS Autodromo de Léon 1 2.3 km 1:37.8 SS10 SSS Autodromo de Léon 2 2.3 km 1:37.3 10 March SS11 Guanajuatito 1 30.97 km 20:35.6 SS12 Otates 1 26.37 km 20:26.9 SS13 El Brinco 1 9.98 km 5:29.2 SS14 Guanajuatito 2 30.97 km 20:10.1 SS15 Otates 2 26.37 km 20:05.1 SS16 El Brinco 2 9.98 km 5:24.6 SS17 SSS Autodromo de Léon 3 2.3 km 1:38.0 SS18 SSS Autodromo de Léon 4 2.3 km 1:36.6 SS19 Street Stage Léon 2 1.11 km 1:02.7 11 March SS20 Alfaro 24.32 km 15:23.7 SS21 Las Minas 1 11.07 km 6:42.9 SS22 11.07 km 6:33.1 World Rally Championship-2 8 March — Llano Grande [Shakedown] 5.31 km 3:51.9 SS1 Street Stage GTO 2.53 km 2:11.6 9 March SS2 Duarte - Derramadero 1 26.05 km 17:52.9 SS3 El Chocolate 1 31.44 km 25:10.4 SS4 Ortega 1 17.23 km 10:09.2 SS5 Street Stage Leon 1 1.11 km 1:05.5 SS6 Duarte - Derramadero 2 26.05 km 17:55.3 SS7 El Chocolate 2 31.44 km 25:08.6 SS8 Ortega 2 17.23 km 10:01.6 SS9 SSS Autodromo de Léon 1 2.3 km 1:43.3 SS10 SSS Autodromo de Léon 2 2.3 km 1:42.6 10 March SS11 Guanajuatito 1 30.97 km 21:27.7 SS12 Otates 1 26.37 km 21:12.6 SS13 El Brinco 1 9.98 km 5:46.4 SS14 Guanajuatito 2 30.97 km 21:13.9 SS15 Otates 2 26.37 km 21:03.2 SS16 El Brinco 2 9.98 km 5:44.1 SS17 SSS Autodromo de Léon 3 2.3 km 1:41.9 SS18 SSS Autodromo de Léon 4 2.3 km 1:41.6 SS19 Street Stage Léon 2 1.11 km 1:05.1 11 March SS20 Alfaro 24.32 km 16:05.1 SS21 Las Minas 1 11.07 km 7:03.6 SS22 Las Minas 2 11.07 km 6:52.3 World Rally Championship-3 8 March — Llano Grande [Shakedown] 5.31 km 5:19.5 SS1 Street Stage GTO 2.53 km 2:38.6 9 March SS2 Duarte - Derramadero 1 26.05 km 22:47.6 SS3 El Chocolate 1 31.44 km 30:36.7 SS4 Ortega 1 17.23 km 12:21.2 SS5 Street Stage Leon 1 1.11 km 1:17.8 SS6 Duarte - Derramadero 2 26.05 km 29:47.6 SS7 El Chocolate 2 31.44 km 37:36.7 SS8 Ortega 2 17.23 km 19:21.2 SS9 SSS Autodromo de Léon 1 2.3 km 9:12.4 SS10 SSS Autodromo de Léon 2 2.3 km 9:03.8 10 March SS11 Guanajuatito 1 30.97 km 26:16.9 SS12 Otates 1 26.37 km 25:26.1 SS13 El Brinco 1 9.98 km 7:06.4 SS14 Guanajuatito 2 30.97 km 26:26.9 SS15 Otates 2 26.37 km 25:29.4 SS16 El Brinco 2 9.98 km 6:56.2 SS17 SSS Autodromo de Léon 3 2.3 km 2:02.5 SS18 SSS Autodromo de Léon 4 2.3 km 2:01.1 SS19 Street Stage Léon 2 1.11 km 2:41.2 11 March SS20 Alfaro 24.32 km 21:26.2 SS21 Las Minas 1 11.07 km 35:35.1 SS22 Las Minas 2 11.07 km No stage-winner No leader
Power stage The Power stage was an 11.07 km stage at the end of the rally. Additional World Championship points were awarded to the five fastest crews. Pos. Driver Co-driver Car Time Diff. Pts. 1 6:33.1 0.0 5 2 6:34.4 +1.3 4 3 6:34.5 +1.4 3 4 6:36.0 +2.9 2 5 6:38.9 +5.8 1
Penalties The following notable crews were given time penalty during the rally.
Stage Driver Co-driver Entrant Car Class Reason SS13 35 6 minutes late 1:00 SS22 1 WRC 0:10 SS22 5 WRC 25 minutes late 4:10 SS22 8 WRC 27 minutes late 4:30
Retirements The following notable crews retired from the event. Under Rally2 regulations, they were eligible to re-enter the event starting from the next leg. Crews that re-entered were given an additional time penalty.
Stage Driver Co-driver Entrant Car Class Cause SS2 33 Mechanical Yes SS2 36 WRC-2 Mechanical Yes SS5 2 WRC Accident No SS6 32 WRC-2 Mechanical Yes SS6 61 WRC-3 Mechanical Yes SS7 9 WRC Off-road Yes SS7 3 WRC Suspension Yes SS8 7 WRC Alternator Yes SS12 8 WRC Engine Yes SS14 32 WRC-2 Mechanical Yes SS14 36 WRC-2 Mechanical Yes SS19 61 WRC-3 Mechanical Yes SS22 61 WRC-3 Mechanical No