ELFYN Evans’ lead in the FIA World Rally Championship is down to nine points after he finished fourth at the demanding Acropolis Rally Greece over the weekend.

But the Dolgellau driver is staying positive and is pleased to still be in front after three gruelling gravel rallies which has seen Toyota Gazoo Racing team-mate Sébastien Ogier narrow the lead significantly.

Evans said: “It’s been a tough weekend with very difficult conditions but we’ve managed to avoid trouble and finish fourth again – and we also got some Sunday points to top up the tally and soften the blow compared to our rivals.

“We definitely knew coming into these last three rough gravel rallies opening the road that it would be possible to lose our lead of the championship, so on that side I’m pleased.

“Now we move onto a different type of rally where we hope to show some more pace and performance.”

Greece’s rough and rocky roads, combined with searing ambient temperatures of over 40°C, presented an extreme challenge for the GR YARIS Rally1, its drivers and the tyres.

Loose stones and bedrock creating steps in the road were a constant hazard of Friday’s stages west of capital city Athens, while the narrow and twisty roads in the mountains of the final two days meant even a small mistake would be heavily punished. Ogier was on the leading pace again despite running second on the loose gravel roads on Friday’s stages, helping to clear a line for rivals starting behind.

Beginning Sunday’s final leg 43.6 seconds behind Ott Tänak (Hyundai) made a third victory in as many rallies unlikely for Ogier and co-driver Vincent Landais, but they still excelled on Sunday, winning both the penultimate test and the Power Stage to finish atop the Sunday classification and clinch 10 extra points in addition to 17 for finishing second overall. Elfyn Evans and Scott Martin finished fourth overall to remain in the lead of the championship together.

As first car on the road on Friday, Evans faced an uphill battle to fight near the front but a calm and collected drive throughout the rally, avoiding the pitfalls involved in the high-attrition Acropolis, ensured he collected a strong haul of points.

He took third on Super Sunday and fourth-fastest time on the Power Stage, and now leads Ogier by nine points and Tänak by 12 points.

Having to settle for second place on a rally for the first time in 2025, TGR-WRT continues to lead the manufacturers’ championship at the halfway point of the season with a 65-point advantage.

Deputy team principal Juha Kankkunen said: “I think we can be quite happy with how the rally finished today. Of course we would like to win every rally, but it’s just not possible and it was again a great fight between Seb and Ott. They both did a fantastic drive, but this time Ott was just a bit faster over the weekend and nobody could beat him.

“Elfyn has also done a fantastic job opening the road on these rallies and still coming away with solid points.”

Up next is Rally Estonia (17-20 July) which returns to the WRC calendar after one year away, offering fast gravel stages around Tartu that combine wide and narrow sections with a generally soft and sandy surface.