Esapekka Lappi is surprised and excited to make his World Rally Championship return at Rally Sweden after admitting he thought his top-level rallying career was over.
The two-time WRC event winner will rejoin Hyundai next week, which will mark the first round of a part-time programme. He previously contested a full-season programme with the Korean manufacturer in 2023, before leaving the WRC following a challenging partial 2024 campaign.
Lappi had thought his time in the WRC had come to an end, having spent last year away from the championship. The 35-year-old has remained active in rallying, contesting the Finnish national championship, which he won alongside co-driver Enni Malkonen.
However, Lappi received a surprise recall from Hyundai for 2026 to share the team’s third car with Dani Sordo and Hayden Paddon, after the team was forced into a reshuffle when Ott Tanak opted to take a sabbatical at the end of last season.
“I thought my WRC career was over, so I’m very surprised and excited to drive at the top level again with Hyundai Motorsport. My results in some of my most recent WRC events haven’t been very successful, so I’m aiming to change that this year and show commitment under every condition that I face,” said Lappi.
Lappi heads to Sweden’s snow stages among the contenders to challenge for a podium, having previously won the event for Hyundai in 2024. Lappi and co-driver Malkonen have enjoyed a strong lead-up to the event after taking a class victory on the snow and ice in a Skoda Fabia Rally2 car at the Arctic Lapland Rally last weekend. A matter of hours after the event, the pair jumped aboard the Hyundai i20 N Rally1 car to prepare for Sweden’s stages.
“Being Finnish, it’s not the most challenging rally for me, but the high speeds and lack of grip make it tricky. We will benefit if there is fresh snow, as the tyre lines of the cars in front will clear it, whereas if it is icy, it might get slower for the cars behind,” said Lappi.
Esapekka Lappi, Hyundai World Rally Team
Photo by: Austral / Hyundai Motorsport
“In 2024, the conditions on Friday night were very challenging, with heavy snowfall at night making visibility very limited, but we handled it well.
“We’ve carried out two winter events with a Rally2 car in Finland and a test day with the Hyundai i20 N Rally1 car on snow. Rally Sweden is Enni’s fourth outing in Rally1, our first together in a top-tier manufacturer entry, which makes this opportunity really special for both of us.”
After a difficult opening round in Monte Carlo last month, Hyundai sporting director Andrew Wheatley believes Lappi and team-mates Thierry Neuville and Adrien Fourmaux will all have the potential to fight for a podium in Sweden.
“Sweden is an event where the team has been successful in the past. [Lappi] won in 2024, Thierry won in 2018, and both he and Adrien have been on the podium in recent years, but it is a difficult rally to win,” said Wheatley.
“The opportunity for success is very much linked to the weather and road conditions; if the conditions are very consistent with no new snowfall, then we have three drivers with the potential to be on the podium.
“However, if the conditions are more complex – for example, if warmer temperatures create larger variations in road surface condition – the running order will have more influence and we will have to be more flexible in our preparations for each day.
“I believe we have the capability to have three cars fighting for the podium, but as we saw in Monte Carlo, starting later on the road can be an advantage in certain conditions or a challenge, and Sweden could still provide a good opportunity.”
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– The Autosport.com Team
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