UPDATE - Citroen's Sebastien Ogier conquers Rally Turkey

ADDS DETAILS, FINAL STANDINGS OF RALLY TURKEY, DRIVERS AND MANUFACTURERS CHAMPIONSHIPS

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

ANKARA (AA) - Sebastien Ogier won Rally Turkey on Sunday with an overall of 3:50:12.1, turning the misfortune of his two rivals to his favor.

Ogier's team-mate Esapekka Lappi finished second at 3:50:46.8 after showing dominance in the first two days. Lappi lost the leading position to Ogier on Saturday.

“This win was really needed and our only chance to get back in the championship fight,” said Ogier in a news conference after the podium ceremony.

“We knew anything could happen because it’s a super-rough rally but the bad luck we had on the previous round in Germany was behind us,” he added.

Lappi said that he is very satisfied with his second position, adding that Citroen one-two gained important points for the manufacturers championship.

Andreas Mikkelsen, who came third at 3:51:16.6 in his Hyundai i20, was also the quickest name in the Cicekli (SS16) stage.

Mikkelsen said that they have always been passive through the first runs of the days to keep everything under control, adding their strategy worked very well.

Mikkelsen's team-mate Ott Tanak, who came to the rally as the championship leader, said an early goodbye on Day 2 due to a technical problem in his car at Datca 1 (SS9) stage.

The Estonian returned to fight on Sunday and won the Marmaris 1 (SS14) and the Wolf Power Stage, Marmaris 2 stage (SS17) -- the final leg of the Rally Turkey.

Tanak secured the leading position on the championship charts after a troublesome weekend, while Ogier melted down the 33-point gap to 17 points.

Jari-Matti Latvala was the fastest at Gokce (SS15) stage.

Thierry Neuville, formerly placed second at the championship, could not change his eighth position on the final day as well.

Rally Turkey is set to be followed by Rally England, Spain, and Australia.

Here are the final times of the Rally Turkey:

1. Sebastien Ogier (Citroen C3) 3:50:12.1

2. Esapekka Lappi (Citroen C3) +34.7

3. Andreas Mikkelsen (Hyundai i20) +1:04.5

4. Teemu Suninen (Ford M-Sport) +1.35.1

5. Dani Sordo (Hyundai i20) +2:25.9

6. Jari-Matti Latvala (Toyota Yaris) +2:59.1

7. Kris Meeke (Toyota Yaris) +3:53.3

8. Thierry Neuville (Hyundai i20) +5:34.8

9. Pontus Tidemand (Ford M-Sport) +7:22.9

10. Ott Tanak (Toyota Yaris) +39:10.2

Drivers championship standings:

1. Ott Tanak - 210 points

2. Sebastien Ogier - 193 points

3. Thierry Neuville - 180 points

4. Andreas Mikkelsen - 94 points

Manufacturers championship standings:

1. Hyundai Shell Mobil WRT - 314 points

2. Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT - 295 points

3. Citroen Total WRT - 259 points

4. M-SPORT FORD WRT - 184 points