Leg 3: Capanaccia gets closer to Fassio
- Julien Hergault
- 19 hours ago
- 5 min read
After three legs and 12 special stages, the same trio is still leading the race as it was yesterday when the cars arrived in Ajaccio. Bertrand Fassio and Jean-François de Montredon (Porsche 911 SC No .10) retain the lead, this time with Olivier Capanaccia and Mathieu Tyran (BMW M3 No. 9) in second after an impressive day. Marc Valliccioni and Christophe Hochet are in third in their BMW M3 No. 10.
“We were pretty wide awake right from the start,” said Bertrand Fassio, looking back on his day. The 92.5 kilometers on the agenda for the day started well, with a victory in SS8 (5 seconds ahead of Julien Saunier and Frédéric Vauclare in the red and blue R5 Maxi Turbo). However, the rest of the day did not go to plan for him and his co-driver. No more wins!
Olivier Capanaccia and Mathieu Tyran (BMW M3 No. 9) excelled in SS9 and SS10, before losing by 1 second in SS11 to the famous repaired and finely driven R5 Maxi Turbo of Saunier/Vauclare. Capanaccia and Tyran finally won the last stage of the day with a 15-second lead over Fassio/de Montredon, giving them three out of five potential victories. The gap has now narrowed considerably. 41 seconds behind yesterday, Capanaccia and Tyran are now only 23 seconds off the lead. A superb day for them, to boost their self confidence and kick off the second half of the 2025 event.
“We've changed a lot of things since yesterday. We've played around with the hydraulics, the anti-roll bars, and made quite a few adjustments to the chassis,” explains Olivier Capanaccia, who is aiming for victory, after his fine 2nd place finish in 2023. “In fact, I've been on attack mode from the start, but I'm not feeling very comfortable. Anyway, the pace at the front is crazy. We're a group of three, but the guys behind us are really strong too. We've got to keep up with Bertrand! He's fast this year (laughs). We'll try to pick up a few seconds tomorrow and again on Saturday. As far as I'm concerned, it's all going to come down to the finish, so we have to keep pushing till the end."
Bertrand Fassio and Jean-François de Montredon remained in the TOP 4 in all five of the day's timed special stages. But the BMW M3 hordes are closing in fast.
The podium is completed by Marc Valliccioni and Christophe Hochet. A satisfying result, but mechanical problems during the first special stage slowed them down: “We had a big leak in the axle, which cost us a lot of time, but we managed to repair it,” said the Corsican driver. He and his co-driver lost 24 seconds early in the morning. They never lost as much ground in any other special stage. The battle remains intense, with less than a minute separating the three drivers. With their momentum, the Capanaccia/Tyran duo looks capable of taking the lead tomorrow.
No longer in 4th place, Pascal Trojani and Jean-Noël Vesperini's BMW M3, bearing the number 11, is now in 6th place, 3'02" behind, having lost more than a minute. This situation benefits Richard Doux and Antoine Paque (4th in their BMW M3, No. 22) and Philippe Gache and Stéphane Prevot, in 5th place. Philippe Gache, who is taking part in his 10th Tour de Corse Historique this year, is part of the Porsche contingent, albeit a small one, among the BMW M3s. "We're still learning about the car, we're still discovering it. It's a bit heavy and clumsy, so we're changing things; for example, we've been playing around with the suspension settings. I like it when we're on fast sections because with the turbo, it's very rough, and that's when you see its strengths. The 911 isn't just a track car," says the driver, who won here in 2011 and 2012... in a Porsche 911!
The number of competitors classified in VHC is now less than 200. ES8 claimed the most victims, with around ten competitors encountering mechanical problems during or after the stage. Tomorrow, with more than 291 kilometers to cover (combining connections and special stages), we can expect another great fight.
VHC Classification
Fassio / de Montredon (Porsche 911 SC n°10) in 2h27’02’’
Capanaccia / Tyran (BMW M3 n°9) at 23’’
Valliccioni / Hochet (BMW M3 n°16) at 47’’
Doux / Paque (BMW M3 n°22) at 2’43’’
Gache / Prevot (Porsche 930 n°4) at 2’47’’
Garnier/Triffault retire in VHRS
Lionel Garnier and Bertrand Triffault (Porsche 912 Coupe No. 458) were enjoying their day yesterday evening. With 36 points, they led the first part of an intense rally, with the gaps between competitors remaining extremely tight. Unfortunately, they were forced to retire on the third day of competition. In the first timed segment of the day, they made a mistake. “We took a left-hand corner a little too wide, the car skidded in the dust and we hit a rock. The impact bounced the car back onto the road, damaging the rims and the rear axle.” Too badly damaged to continue, the 911 had to be retired. In the middle of the road, the car was blocking the way for other competitors. Points were awarded before the accident, resulting in a very provisional ranking for an eventful start of the day.
Yves Deflandre and Jennifer Hugo are now in the lead. The Belgian pair put their No. 371 Porsche 911 in front with only a five-point lead. "We are happy to be in the lead, both in our category and overall. The two special stages this morning went well. In the afternoon, the stages were more consistent, with lower average speeds. We have adapted our approach to be more strategic.“ The leaders—like all the other crews interviewed—praise the route laid out by José Andreani. “We are really enjoying driving on these beautiful roads and we would like to thank the organizers for this wonderful rally." Let's hope that this romance can end in victory for those who discovered the event back in 2020.
To achieve this, they'll need to keep Christophe Baillet and Jean-Marc Piret behind. The latter intends to continue navigating carefully with his driver to come close. “Yesterday, we were four points behind Yves and Jennifer. Now we're five points down. Conceding just one point during the day isn't bad. Especially since we had a warning when we hit a embankment.” Both crews are showing off their Porsche 911s. Powerful and fast in acceleration, they are the stars of the intermediate class.
Julien and Fleur Pujols, who were in the lead after the first stage on Tuesday and are now tied for third place (84 points), analyze their day. “We remained cautious throughout the morning, as the roads in the woods were still wet and slippery.” The couple held their own throughout the technical and tricky special stages. On the agenda tonight, as for many crews, is a complete overhaul of their Volkswagen Golf GTI. The 2025 Tour de Corse Historique is entering its second half, with tomorrow's stage being the longest (291 kilometers in total). The VHRS will start after the VHCs, with different road conditions and in the evening light.
VHRS Classification
Deflandre / Hugo (Porsche 911 n°371) at 70 pts
Baillet / Pirer (Porsche 911 n°342) at 75 pts
Arnal / Goudou (Morris Cooper S n°471) at 84 pts
Pujols / Pujols (Volkswagen Golf GTI n°431) at 84 pts
Feligioni / Feligioni (Porsche 911 SC n°343) at 86 pts
A long day ahead on Friday
This Friday will see the longest stage of the rally: 291 kilometers. After the start in Bonifacio and the connection to Maison Pieraggi, the rally will follow the east coast to Lucciana (Bastia-Poretta airport), with a midday break in Moriani. This leg will feature five special stages, including some legendary sections of the Tour de Corse such as the recently resurfaced Pont de l'Enfer bridge and the section near the Saint-Jean-Baptiste de La Porta church. The 30-kilometer La Porta - Barchetta special stage will start there. This route will certainly help to clarify the competition among the contenders.
