Kiwi WRC driver Hayden Paddon has manoeuvred Rally Sweden's special stages expertly overnight to tighten his grip on second place.
The 28-year-old closed in on first-placed Frenchman Sebastien Ogier, reducing the margin to just 8.8 seconds following some favourable road conditions on SS 12, before dropping off slightly on the afternoon stages to finish the day 17.1 seconds behind.
That marked a major gain on Ogier after sitting 32.4 seconds behind him at the end of the previous day.
Norwegian Mads Østberg is in third, a substantial 25.2 seconds behind -- and that puts Haddon in good stead for the remainder of the race.
"It's been a good day. To consolidate our positon in second is very good. That was obviously the target today," he said.
"We got pretty close to Seb [Ogier] there in the morning run when road conditions played into our hands. We weren't able to quite keep pace on the afternoon stages; still we're very happy to be where we are.
"It's a short day tomorrow. We really just need to concentrate on maintaining the position. This would be a great result for the team and for ourselves if we can finish it off, so that's the target now."
Paddon was racing in the New Generation Hyundai i20 WRC car for the first time in competition -- and he thrived in the new vehicle, with team principal Michel Nandan saying the car has shown "its potential to be quickest on the stage".
However, Nandan is adopting a conservative approach to the final day of racing.
"We are aiming to defend second place, which will be a very good result for the team and, of course, for Hayden," he said.
"Hayden has had another fantastic day, working very well to make the most of road position advantages to reduce the gap to the rally leader.
"Anything can happen, even with just one stage left, so we have to remain cautious. Let’s hope for a trouble-free final stage tomorrow and, I hope, to see Hyundai Motorsport colours on the Rally Sweden podium again!”
Rally Sweden finishes tomorrow with only one special stage left, after WRC organisers called off another stage.
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