[5] The M-Sport Ford WRT crew of Alberto Heller and José Diaz won the World Rally Championship-2 category in a Škoda Fabia R5.

Defending world champions Sébastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia took fifth place, which was enough for them to secure their sixth consecutive drivers' and co-drivers' titles respectively.

Pontus Tidemand and Jonas Andersson were in second, while the Finnish crew of Kalle Rovanperä and Jonne Halttunen were another twenty-one points behind in third.

In the World Rally Championship-3 standings, Enrico Brazzoli and Luca Beltrame held a slender one-point lead over Taisko Lario and Tatu Hämäläinen, while 2018 Junior World Rally champions Emil Bergkvist and Johan Johansson were in third, eleven and seventeen points further behind in the drivers' and co-drivers' standings respectively.

He ended the day in seventh after title contender Thierry Neuville suffered a rear-left puncture in the second pass of Sherwood, which dropped him down to tenth overall.

Ford duo Elfyn Evans and Teemu Suninen completed the day in eighth and ninth respectively after giving positions to their defending world champion Ogier.

The Belgian managed to catch two places despite dry roads meant he was effectively high-speed road-sweepers, cleaning the surface of thick gravel to expose a faster line with more grip for those starting later.

He eventually ended the leg in eighth, more than 50 seconds behind the title rival Sébastien Ogier, who kept his position in sixth after a trouble free day.

Meanwhile, Ott Tänak set some brilliant pace, which elevated him to the top spot, around 20 seconds cleared of his teammate Jari-Matti Latvala.

Seventh-place Elfyn Evans provided a convenient buffer between Ogier and Neuville, with teammate Teemu Suninen finished the leg in ninth.

Elfyn Evans completed the event in sixth after teammate Ogier, while Craig Breen gained one place from Teemu Suninen, who retired his Fiesta before the final test following an impact in the previous stage.

WRC-2 category winner Alberto Heller, local driver Steve Glenney and rally veteran Jourdan Serderidis covered out of the leaderboard.