Rally Argentina organizers have confirmed that the full distance of leg one will be run despite the delays incurred on Friday morning, meaning the final stage of the day will take place in the dark.
The fifth round of the World Rally Championship was delayed when the truck taking petrol to the refuel after stage two suffered mechanical problems. The first car on the road this morning - Sebastien Loeb's Citroen – was scheduled to start the La Pampa test at 7:28 a.m. local time, but the No. 1 Citroen did not get a green light until 8:30 a.m.
A spokesman from the organizers said: "We had to replace the truck which was taking the fuel and this took some time, it was a problem of the [fuel] supplier. The rally is running one hour and two minutes late now and will continue to do so throughout this afternoon. This does mean the crews will start the final stage today in the night time."
Loeb had been scheduled to start Friday morning's opener before dawn, but the delay meant he ran SS2 in daylight. The crews have planned one more stage in the dark – Saturday night's repeat of the superspecial stage on the outskirts of Villa Carlos Paz.