Stage4: Astier Holds Firm, the Podium Fight Tightens

38 minutes ago

7 min read

Raphaël Astier and Denis Giraudet will head into the final day of the Tour de Corse Historique with one hand on the trophy. After a leg spent entirely in the Alta Rocca, the Porsche 911 RS # 10 crew rolled into Ajaccio 2'49" clear of Tom and Tristan Pieri’s BMW M3 # 12. The fight for the remaining podium places, though, is wide open. Yoann Bonato and Benjamin Boulloud (Lancia Delta HF Integrale # 6) have closed to within 42 seconds of the Pieris, while Julien Saunier and Frédéric Vauclare, quickest of all today in their Renault 5 Maxi Turbo # 2, sit just 17 seconds behind

Competition

Granite villages, roads clinging to the mountainside: the fourth leg took the crews deep into the Alta Rocca on their way from Propriano to Ajaccio. Four stages and 98.4 km against the clock awaited them, with morning showers giving way to dry roads as the day wore on. Arbellara - Zerubia (SS11, 25.8 km) set the tone. On a still-damp surface, Bonato and Boulloud gambled on soft tyres and were rewarded with a share of fastest time alongside Astier and Giraudet, a clear sign that the leader had no intention of easing off.

The afternoon brought Chialza - Orone (SS12), with its jump at the finish, and Aullène - Zicavo (SS13), scene of Claude Balesi’s famous 1987 drive, when his Group N Renault 5 Turbo beat every works car. Petreto-Bicchisano - Bisinao (SS14) rounded off the day, crossing the Calzola bridge before a narrow, dirty finale in the true Corsican mould.

This was Julien Saunier’s day. Thursday had been a catalogue of problems, from cracked rims to a failing turbo, but this time the Renault 5 Maxi Turbo # 2 ran faultlessly. He and Frédéric Vauclare won two stages, finished within 3 seconds of the pace on the other two, and were fastest over the leg, beating Astier by 14 seconds.

Astier, though, remains firmly in charge. The Pieris lost ground with two wrong tyre calls. “We went out on slicks in the rain, then on wets in the dry,” explained Tristan Pieri. Believing themselves stranded in no man’s land between the leader and the Lancia, they also chose to “put on a show for the crowd”, throwing the BMW sideways with the handbrake in the tight corners. But the Lancia is closer than they might think. Bonato has cut the gap to 42 seconds, with Saunier a further 17 seconds back. Three cars are now covered by 59 seconds for two podium spots, and with the final leg expected to be dry, the R5 has the edge. “Third place is going to go,” Bonato admitted with good grace. “If the weather’s good, we won’t be able to fight the power of the Renault 5.”

For Thomas Argenti and Meryl Giraldo (BMW M3 # 8), the day turned into a nightmare. A misfire on Aullène - Zicavo was only the start: midway through Petreto-Bicchisano - Bisinao, the gear lever came away in the driver’s hand, leaving them stuck in second gear for the remaining 23 km at 8,000 rpm. “Things were banging everywhere, there was smoke,” said the co-driver. More than 6 minutes slipped away, and with them fifth place, lost by just 3 seconds. Their hopes of restarting on Saturday are slim.

That fifth place now belongs to Corsican brothers Jérôme and Jean-François Mancini (BMW M3 # 14), who are driving this, their fifth Tour de Corse Historique together, “for him”: their father Michel died suddenly just days before the start. They have climbed steadily all week, from the edge of the top 15 on Monday to ninth on Wednesday and sixth on Thursday. Today’s fifth fastest time on the leg lifted them into the top 5 that Jérôme had quietly been dreaming of.

The Alta Rocca claimed its share of victims too. Pierre Vivier and Jean-Christophe Garcia (Renault R5 Turbo # 28) had worked their way up from 26th on Monday evening to 12th overall, third in the VHC classification, when they tackled SS13 on slicks over a road that was very wet in places. “I spun, hit the rear wheel and broke the hub carrier,” said Vivier. “Nothing serious, but we couldn’t carry on.” They will restart on Saturday under Super Rally rules. Didier Auriol and his Ajaccio-born co-driver Fabrice Gordon (Lancia Delta # 3) never got to see the rally roll into Ajaccio: after going off on Ghisoni - Fischer on Thursday, they did not restart on Friday.

Stage 11 was delayed after the No. 123 Porsche 911 went off the road and fell several meters below the road. Driver Andreas Kunz and his co-driver Franck Macle escaped with a broken foot and a broken ankle, respectively.

Julien Saunier (Renault 5 Maxi Turbo # 2): “No mechanical problems at all today. Our motivation was to set fastest times and go after the third place we let slip with a bad tyre choice. Yoann (Bonato) drove really well, but on the last stage, in the dry, we made the difference. The thing is, the R5 lacks development: the BMWs and Porsches have been improving for 40 years, whereas we have everything to learn with today’s tyres and brake pads, because there are far fewer of these cars in competition. Tomorrow we’ll stay sensible, but we’ll try to grab a podium spot.”

Raphaël Astier (Porsche 911 RS # 10): “Another good day, but we drove on wet roads almost all the time, with pace notes made during the recce more than a week ago, so there was a bit of hesitation. The last stage was dry, but we’d been told some sections had been badly damaged by yesterday’s storm, so with our lead we didn’t want to take any risks and stayed on wets. In the end it was almost completely dry, which was a shame! The car is working really well, no warning signs at all. We’re taking a lot of care over our braking zones while keeping up a decent rhythm so we don’t lose focus. Tomorrow we’ll do the same. Before the start, I was aiming for the podium, or the top 5 at worst. As for the win, I thought about it… just a little!”

Yoann Bonato (Lancia Delta HF Integrale # 6): “We made a really good choice this morning by going out on softs, and that’s how we set fastest time. But as soon as it’s dry, it’s so hard for us: the cars are too different in terms of power. Never mind, we’re having a ball! The atmosphere is crazy, people are jumping for joy at the side of the road, and the car spits out big flames. We’re putting on a show, it’s brilliant.”

VHC classification

Astier / Giraudet (Porsche 911 RS # 10) 3h32'44"
Guignard / Collinet (Renault 5 Tour de Corse # 35) +18'47"
Penlae / Penlae (Porsche 911 SC # 37) +22'59"

Outright classification

Astier / Giraudet (Porsche 911 RS # 10) 3h32'44"
Pieri / Pieri (BMW M3 # 12) +2'49"
Bonato / Boulloud (Lancia Delta HF Integrale # 6) +3'31"

Regularity

Christophe Baillet and Jean-Marc Piret (Porsche 911 # 332) were already in control. After dark, they were untouchable. Of all the crews who tackled the 27.4 km of Petreto-Bicchisano - Bisinao (RZ 14) by headlight, they alone came through without a single penalty point. “Hairy, but beautiful” was Baillet’s verdict when he rolled in at around 8.30 pm. Having dropped just 2.1 seconds all day, the Porsche pair head into the final leg 5.9 seconds clear.

Their closest rivals had looked the stronger crew for most of the day. Yves Deflandre and Jennifer Hugo (Porsche 911 # 330) dropped 2 tenths in RZ 11 and nothing at all in RZ 12. They then topped the Intermediate average through Aullène - Zicavo (RZ 13), trimming 7 tenths off the gap. The night undid all that work. A brush with the scenery in the final zone left the 911 with a damaged wing and bumper. It cost only 1.6 seconds on the scoresheet, but meant a long evening of repairs, with the crew still searching for a steering rack to make Saturday’s start. Their 2nd place, at least, looks secure.

Bruno Saby’s learning curve keeps rising. The 1986 Tour de Corse winner is only just getting to know his Porsche 911 SC (# 356). His regular Renault 5 Turbo, the car of his 1981 French title, had no time for a service after clinching the 2026 Coupe de France des Rallyes VHRS at Montélimar in late September. Alongside Christophe Marques, Saby won RZ 10 on Thursday and now holds a provisional 3rd place, 15.5 seconds off the lead. He has not come alone either: as patron of the charity Espoir contre le Cancer, he has rallied a group of French, German and Belgian crews entered under its colours. That 3rd place is not yet set in stone.

Alexandre Merle and Pascal Fouchy (Porsche 911 # 369) put in the day’s most eye-catching run, dropping not a single point through RZ 11 and 12. They let 3.9 seconds slip over the last two zones, but it was enough to keep 4th. Lluis Palli and Carles Sasplugas (Innocenti Mini Cooper 1300 # 473) had a far rougher ride, shipping 14.3 seconds in RZ 12 alone.

Christophe Baillet (Porsche 911 # 332): “The last one, in total darkness, was hairy but beautiful, with real sensations. In regularity you can never sit on a lead: the slightest mistake costs you in the technical sections, and nothing’s won until the finish. But tonight we combined total concentration with the joy of driving stunning roads in the dark.”

Yves Deflandre (Porsche 911 # 330): “It had been a good day, we were more or less setting the pace, but the last zone was treacherous and it caught us out. We hit hard: a wing, part of the bumper. It very rarely happens to me, but that’s racing. The penalty is small, but there’s work to do on the car.”

Bruno Saby (Porsche 911 SC # 356): “Regularity is a different trade altogether. On the mainland I run in the High average and push even harder than here, but some of these zones are set below 60 km/h. You have to break everything down from the recce onwards, and that’s probably where I can still improve. Luckily my co-driver Christophe builds his own regularity instruments, so he knows exactly how to use them! I’m still learning this discipline. It makes you think, and at our age that’s no bad thing.”

Regularity overall classification