“That hunger for winning has not disappeared anywhere”

Toyota’s Sebastien Ogier mixed Kalle Rovanperä staged an interesting duel at this year’s World Rally Championship in Kenya. Ogier, who drove to his third victory of the season, was more or less on the back of his neck the whole time, but the Finnish youth challenged hard until the end.

In the end, the difference between the two was only 6.7 seconds. Sports expert Henri Haapamäki was excited by what he saw.

According to him, it was a very mutual struggle between the two.

– Yes, this was certainly one of the toughest battles, that’s for sure. Both had problems, but they were at an even pace. Kalle gave a bit of an equalizer in that he had to start as a plow truck. I believe that the difference would have been a little different if Kalle had been allowed to start from a slightly better place.

Ogier, who won his last world championship two years ago, will not ride a full season this season either. Something about the abilities of the eight-time world champion is said by the fact that he is the only driver this season who has been able to win more than once.

He has reached the highest podium in three races. Ogier has missed two races completely.

– That record is unbelievably hard. It’s behind the work and pain when trying to take something away from him.

Rovanperä, who is chasing his second World Championship title, is considered Ogier’s successor.

– If Kalle Rovanperä is by far the best driver of the entire series, we can see that Ogier is the multi-champion of his era and still is. No one there can match the speed of these gentlemen if they pull at full speed, Haapamäki enthuses.

Ogier model

More proof of Ogier’s cold-headedness was received on the day of the decision. In Sunday’s second special test, the Frenchman had to drive for a long time without the tailgate and rear wing. Despite this, Ogier drove a clear bottom time.

In the penultimate special stage, engine overheating problems came close to costing him the lead. However, Ogier made the most of his experience and considered the gap to Rovapera suitable before the Power Stage.

– That showed how hard he works with a routine. We take a hit, the tailgate flies off and we still pull hard times. The pressure from Rovanperä doesn’t ease either. Falling into a mistake in those circumstances is very sensitive.

– He is a master in how to drive so well with the equipment that is available in those conditions. Many younger drivers lose their temper and break their car more. Ogier performs maximally for the current situation.

Haapamäki also wants to praise the maturity of 22-year-old Rovanperä.

– Nothing away from Rovanpera. He was the only one who could match Ogier’s ride and is capable of a similar mature performance, even though he is much more inexperienced.

Rovanperä’s body language

For Rovanperä, the most important thing of the weekend was that he was able to further increase his World Series points lead. It is now 41 points, which means that the Finn can afford to miss even one race weekend completely.

Although Rovanperä knows how to keep the big picture in mind, he has a huge desire to win. An example of this was seen in the goal, when Rovanperä watched Ogier’s progress in frustration.

– That hunger for victory has not disappeared anywhere. With the championship, the stomach has not been full. He has a fierce desire to win rallies. There is no way he will settle for second place.

Since Ogier will not drive a full season, Rovanperä’s biggest threats can be considered team mate Elfyn Evans and M-Sport’s Ott Tänakia. However, Rovanperä tore a further gap between them. The result of the Hyundai driver Thierry Neuville, who challenged Rovanperä in the World Cup battle, was rejected, because a member of Neuville’s background team had familiarized himself with the routes of the special tests against the rules.

Will we get another world title fight?

– Yes, there will definitely be a fight, but if you consider that he can not drive one rally and still lead the series, it is pretty clear at the moment. But if you consider that there will be technical problems in three rallies, you won’t laugh at all in Finnish terms. It can turn around very quickly, Haapamäki reminds.

Kudos to Lapland

Competed in his first Safari rally Esapekka Lappi was suffering from cardan shaft problems in his Hyundai car over the weekend. Lapland, however, proved itself in new terrains and was firmly in third place for a long time.

Haapamäki praises the level of performance in Lapland.

– These technical problems are really annoying, they are both confusing and the same kind of error occurs more than once. Some design mistakes have been made for those conditions.

However, Lapland competed until the end. On the Power Stage, he finished in fifth fastest time. Despite everything, the Finn’s body language was positive.

– I would say that Esapekka gained strength from these interruptions. It’s a completely different situation for the driver when the game is lost. It relieves the driver from pressure.