Takamoto Katsuta has made up over a minute and a half on third-placed Ott Tänak on a single stage while Kalle Rovanperä hit trouble as the rain arrived at Safari Rally Kenya.
The threat of rain had hung over the afternoon loop of stages, and the clouds delivered in time for the first repeated test of Saturday: Sleeping Warrior.
And with conditions evolving from car to car, there were big swings in the split times as different drivers faced the worst of the rain in different sections of the stage.
But once it all shook out, it was Katsuta who emerged a dominant fastest – winning the stage by 15.3s.
Crucially however, Katsuta was 1m31.8s faster than Tänak, and with a 1m47.7s deficit prior to the stage he is now only 15.9s behind.
Katsuta picked up some greenery on his way to a commanding stage win
That was despite a wild moment towards the end of the stage where Katsuta see-sawed across the road, through ruts that had filled with water, and collected a cactus.
Tänak was also compromised though, as co-driver Martin Järveoja was seen cleaning the windshield which had misted – a problem that also affected Hyundai team-mate Thierry Neuville.
But the big drama could be Rovanperä, who arrived at the end of the stage with his rear-left toe link seemingly broken – despite setting the second fastest time.
Even rally leader Elfyn Evans wasn’t immune, as he suffered a spin on the same water-logged section that caught out Katsuta.
His rally lead however is still a healthy 1m20.8s.
Rovanperä's rear-left corner isn't looking too pretty after SS14
