Ogier leads Argentina superspecial

Ogier was one of the later World Rally Car runners and usurped long-time stage leader - and Volkswagen team-mate - Andreas Mikkelsen, with a time of 2m32s around the 1.7-mile Villa de Merlo test.

Mikkelsen looked to have scored the top spot courtesy of his earlier start time.

The stage around the small town of Merlo proved to be increasingly dusty, with some drivers struggling with visibility and with finding a suitable line to take.

Ogier's stage partner Kris Meeke scored second, although he set the same time as Mikkelsen with a 2m32.2s.

Last year's Rally Argentina winner Jari-Matti Latvala was a further tenth back in fourth.

Dani Sordo led the Hyundai challenge in fifth, edging stablemate Thierry Neuville by a tenth.

Lorenzo Bertelli was the last of the WRC runners and managed seventh, despite crashing twice on the recce earlier in the week.

Yurii Protasov topped the WRC2 runners and managed 12th overall, 2.4s ahead of his nearest rival Stephane Lefebvre.