Kalle Rovanpera claimed a maiden Rally Finland World Rally Championship victory after producing a dominant performance to head a Toyota top-five lockout.
Two-time world champions Rovanpera and co-driver Jonne Halttunen claimed 10 stage wins to defeat Toyota team-mate Takamoto Katsuta by 39.2s, in the fastest rally in WRC history as the pair took the win with an average speed of 129.9km/h.
Sebastien Ogier completed the podium ahead of Elfyn Evans and Sami Pajari to seal a first top-five lockout for a manufacturer since Lancia in 1990.
The victory ended an eight-year wait for a Finnish driver to win the famous high-speed gravel rally and arrived after Rovanpera had crashed out of promising leads in the previous two editions.
“It is quite an amazing feeling. Obviously we have been close a few times and I felt we had to do it this year. We really worked hard for this one.” said Rovanpera, after taking a 17th career win while claiming a perfect 35 points from the event.
Adapting to Hankook’s gravel tyres has been a struggle for Rovanpera this season, with the Finn admitting in Estonia two weeks ago that “if we cannot do it in Estonia we cannot do it anywhere else”.
Kalle Rovanperä, Jonne Halttunen, Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT Toyota GR Yaris Rally1
Photo by: Toyota Racing
However, Rovanpera rediscovered his speed on gravel in Finland but admitted he was never 100% comfortable behind the wheel of his GR Yaris.
The Finn moved into the outright lead after winning Friday’s stage three. Rovanpera managed to increase his lead to 4.4s over Hyundai’s Adrien Fourmaux at midday service in what proved to be a tight fight, with the top five covered by 4.9s.
Wet weather arrived on Friday afternoon but it failed to disrupt Rovanpera who managed to increase the advantage to 4.9s over reigning world champion Thierry Neuville, who starred in the wet, as Fourmaux dropped to third, 7.7s adrift.
Changeable weather continued to impact the event on Saturday with stages held in both dry and incredibly wet conditions. Rovanpera declared the conditions the wettest he’d experienced in Finland, but in the dry his confidence grew, winning three of the four morning stages. A slow right-rear puncture cost him the chance of a clean sweep.
Rovanpera extended his lead to 14.9s over Neuville before drama struck the world champion, as well as the chasing Fourmaux, and eased the pressure on the leader. Neuville and Fourmaux suffered front-right punctures within minutes of each other in stage 16, that ended their respective victory hopes as they lost almost two minutes and dropped to sixth and seventh overall.
With a 36.1s advantage over team-mate Katsuta ahead of Sunday’s two passes through the famous Ouninpohja stage, Rovanpera clinched an emotional victory with a blistering Power Stage win. Katsuta’s fine drive was rewarded with a second podium of the season.
Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1
Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool
Eight-time world champion team-mate Ogier revealed he was battling with himself to find the commitment and take the risks required at times, but the Frenchman sealed third with a stunning Power Stage effort.
Evans’ run to fourth and three Super Sunday points helped the Welshman move back into a three-point championship lead over Rovanpera, who climbed from fourth to second in the standings, after pre-event championship leader Ott Tanak failed to score any points.
Tanak found the going difficult opening the road before his rally was derailed by a collision with a tree in stage seven that damaged the cooling system on his i20 N, costing the Estonian 23 seconds.
But Tanak was then handed a five-minute penalty and suspended 35-point deduction after he left the stage end and collided with a scrutineer. The Estonian finished the rally in 10th after a wild spin in the final stage that appeared to be caused by a front-left tyre delamination.
Sami Pajari produced his most impressive drive of the year, winning three stages on his way to fifth place, having been locked in the early fight for the lead before backing off when the rain arrived.
Neuville finished sixth, but he felt his title hopes were over, while Fourmaux retired in the final stage after suffering another puncture.
Elfyn Evans, Scott Martin, Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT Toyota GR Yaris Rally1
Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool
Josh McErlean led the M-Sport-Ford charge in seventh ahead of Martins Sesks, who lost time to a misty windscreen on Saturday, while Gregoire Munster slipped a spot to ninth after puncture in the final stage.
Finn Roope Korhonen took maiden WRC2 honours after pipping WRC veteran and Toyota team principal Jari-Matti Latvala by 1.1s after a final-stage showdown. Championship leader and Rally Estonia outright winner Oliver Solberg crashed out of the event on Friday.
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