This is the Statt Mann Baby. Time to Scatt a little bit.

Ott TanakToyota’s Ott Tanak won this weekend’s Rally Turkey. It’s his third win on the season and leaves him second in the fight for the 2018 World Rally Championship.

Tanak capitalized on the retirement of points leader Thierry Neuville in a Hyundai and Sebastian Ogier who is third in the championship in a Ford. It was a tough, three-day gravel event, the first in Turkey since 2010.

It was Tanak’s third straight victory after wins in Finland and Germany. What’d you do this summer!

Now 24 points cover Neuville, Tanak and Ogier for the championship with three events left including Great Britain October 4th through the 7th.

The event drama included retirements, cars crashing and burning to a crisp and Tanak, the winner, falling back to ninth before surging to the victory. Friday’s competition was ultra close. Neuville and Ogier ended the day split by three-tenths of a second. But Neuville destroyed his suspension to maintain that lead and couldn’t continue on Saturday morning.

Amazing how much drama can happen if drivers are forced to compete without a made-up playoff format

Peace.