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The Citroën C3 WRCs delight the crowds in Mexico City!

After a long day, the Rally Mexico crews contested the opening two stages in the centre of Mexico City. Kris Meeke and Stéphane Lefebvre came away from the iconic Zócalo square in second and twelfth positions respectively.

It's not often that you start a rally in an airplane! And yet that's exactly how all the competing crews began their day at León airport early this morning. After a one-hour flight, they landed at Mexico City's international airport.

Given a hero's welcome, the competitors completed a series of promotional activities throughout the day. Towards the end of the afternoon, they were finally able to take a look at the 1.57km-long super special stage. Just as they did so, a violent storm hit the city, leaving the course completely soaked!

The rain did not last, however. As dusk fell, whilst the huge Zócalo square filled with curious onlookers and excited enthusiasts, the first cars tackled the stage, which was dotted with large patches of standing water.

As more cars completed, the racing line dried out. On the first pass, Kris Meeke set the second fastest time, just before rain started to fall again. In less favourable conditions, Stéphane Lefebvre finished his opening attempt in 12th place.

A matter of a few minutes later, the crews completed their second runs. This time, Kris drove in less favourable conditions than his rivals. He nonetheless managed to stay in touch with the leading crews as he set the seventh fastest time. Meanwhile, Stéphane lost around ten seconds after stalling on a hairpin.

In the overall standings, Kris Meeke lies joint second overnight, 1.6s behind the leader, whilst Stéphane Lefebvre is twelfth, 19.4s off the pace.

Following this brief outing in the centre of Mexico's sprawling metropolis of 24 million inhabitants, the competitors flew back to León. Tomorrow, the race continues with the season's opening stages on gravel. The rally begins with El Chocolate, the longest stage of the event at 54.9km!