Day 3 of the country’s first-ever WRC event was marked by heavy attrition, as drivers battled rocks and an abrasive surface that caused several competitors to suffer punctures. The incident-packed day created a series of upsets, both in the fight for rally honors and in the all-important world title battle. Heading into Saturday’s finale, Latvian driver Mārtiņš Sesks leads the overall standings in his M-Sport-run Ford Puma, holding a slender 3.4-second lead over Hyundai’s Thierry Neuville. Overnight leader Adrien Fourmaux finished Friday as the fastest driver on the road, but he dropped to fourth after receiving a one-minute time penalty for checking in early to the evening’s technical zone. It was the latest twist in a remarkable day in which the lead of Rally Saudi Arabia repeatedly shifted. Drivers would lose ground to a puncture, only for their rivals to suffer the same fate moments later. “There was nothing we could do,” said Sébastien Ogier after he too picked up a puncture. “It’s a pure lottery out there.” As a result of the tough conditions, outright victory will not be assured until the conclusion of the Wolff Power Stage on Saturday. With extra points on offer in that final run, the destiny of the World Championship will also go down to the wire. The drivers faced three stages on Friday, each run twice, with a morning loop followed by an afternoon repeat. The action began with the sandy Algulah test, before the crews faced two longer challenges: Um Al Jerem and Wadi Almatwi, both around the 30km mark and the latter featuring some of the most rugged, mountainous terrain of the rally. The morning loop delivered an exceptionally tight battle for the lead, with four drivers compressing the gap between them. Before returning to the Service Park, fewer than ten seconds separated leader Fourmaux from Sesks, Sami Pajari, and Ott Tänak. After the first stage in the afternoon, that gap shrank even further, with just 6.3 seconds covering the top four protagonists. But the closeness of the field unraveled dramatically in the final two stages as the leading runners began to hit trouble. On the penultimate stage, both Tänak and Pajari were forced to stop and change tyres after punctures — dropping them out of contention. That left Fourmaux and Sesks to fight it out. Sesks believed he had seized control when the Hyundai man overshot a corner and lost time reversing back onto the route. But then came disaster for the Latvian: a left-rear puncture appeared to hand the advantage to his French rival. Moments later, Fourmaux suffered a front-left puncture of his own, leaving the pair separated by just a handful of seconds. Before the application of his one-minute penalty, Fourmaux had ended the day just 2.9 seconds ahead of the Ford driver.

Both Elfyn Evans and Sébastien Ogier encountered tyre troubles on this demanding day in the desert. On Friday morning’s SS11, Evans was forced to stop and change a left-rear tyre, losing a little over a minute and a half. Ogier drove more conservatively, attempting to preserve his tyres as the surface began to rut, but on the final stage his right-rear tyre came off the rim. He finished 23.8 seconds slower than his Toyota team-mate Kalle Rovanperä, who edged him by 0.2 seconds overall to steal fifth place. Even so, it remains an advantage for Ogier: he ended the day sixth, with Evans eighth, to provisionally lead his championship rival by one point. Beyond the on-stage battles, Rally Saudi Arabia has stood out as a showpiece event and a fitting conclusion to this year’s World Rally Championship. As host of a WRC round for the first time, Saudi Arabia continues its commitment to welcoming international motorsport to the Kingdom, adding the WRC to a portfolio that includes Formula 1, Dakar Rally, and FIA Formula E. Work behind the scenes at Rally Saudi Arabia has strengthened the Kingdom’s long-term ambition to develop motorsport and expand community participation, inspiring the next generation of engineers, officials, and drivers from across Arabia. With each rally stage set amid the stunning landscape of Saudi Arabia, this inaugural WRC event reflects a wider vision: connecting world-class competition with local development, and turning global motorsport into opportunities for talent, tourism, and the sporting culture of the Kingdom. Highlighting this purpose, HRH Prince Khalid bin Sultan Al-Abdullah Al-Faisal, Chairman of the Saudi Automobile and Motorcycle Federation & Saudi Motorsport Company, said: “Our goal is to make world-class motorsport part of everyday life in Saudi Arabia. An inspiration for youth, a driver for participation, and a platform to showcase the true potential of our country. Rally Saudi Arabia brings the world to our desert, but it also opens doors for the next generation to see themselves in this sport and build its future here at home.” Everything remains to play for on the final day as the crews tackle the 16.29km Thahban stage twice, along with Asfan — the longest stage of the rally at 33.28km. There are plenty of extra points available, including the 10 bonus points, for the best performers across Saturday, plus the additional points on offer in the Wolf Power Stage. It means that both the fight for victory at Rally Saudi Arabia — and the climax of the World Championship — will go down to a thrilling desert finale.