Kalle Rovanperä writes new rally history again. At the same time, in Jyväskylä we will see what the future of rallying can look like, writes Urheilu’s rally reporter Micke Suopuro.
Micke Suopuro sports reporter
JYVÄSKYLÄ.
The Finnish World Rally Championship is experiencing a historically long period without a Finnish winner. That has been said a lot about the rally competition, which has been run since 1951.
The statistics are still not noticeable on the rain-soaked streets of Jyväskylä on Tuesday evening. The metal fences erected on the green Harju show that the rally has again arrived in the city and its core.
The last time a Finnish victory was celebrated in Jyväskylä Esapekka Lappi in 2017. At that time, he only drove in the fourth World Cup rally of his career with the equipment of the main class.
A lot has happened since then. For example, Lappi alone has changed stables four times in this time and has been unemployed once.
After Lapland, they have only achieved victory Ott Tänak and Elfyn Evans. The Estonian has been number one three times, Evans twice.
The myth of the Finns’ invincibility at home has been badly eroded since the 2010s.
The first World Cup rally in Jyväskylä was held when the series was founded, i.e. in 1973. Until 2010, people other than Finns could win World Cup-level Jyväskylä only five times.
After 2010, the ratio has changed completely. Foreigners’ victories have been celebrated nine times, blue and white only four times.
In the years 2011–2013, Jyväskylä was under French command, when the Sebastian Loeb and Ogier. That previous historic record was broken in 2014 Jari-Matti Latvala.
So the newest pipe was already the longest ever last year. However, it is coming to an end now.
Everything is laid out for Kalle Rovanperä
When Lappi won in Jyväskylä, no Kalle Rovanperä had never driven a World Cup rally yet. In between, the native of Puuppo has grown into a two-time world champion and by far the brightest star in the sport.
When Rovanperä wins on Sunday, he will do it at the age of 23 years, 10 months and 4 days. He will become the youngest winner of the Finnish World Rally Championship. Latvala was “already” 25 years old when he won in 2010.
Of course, Rovanperä will not take the title of the youngest winner of the Jyväskylä rally. Simo Lampinen won “Jyskälä” at the age of 20 in 1963.
Everything is laid in Rovanperä. As a part-time driver, the Finn does not have to think about the championship fight and worry about the starting point. These factors ruined the chances of winning two years ago, when Rovanperä finished second.
Now he can start the trip on Friday in sixth place, so from an ideal place. The victories in the Polish and Latvian rallies showed how dominant Rovanperä is in fast gravel rallies compared to others, especially with the starting position advantage.
Still, I don’t mean that victory will come off easily. The starting point advantage can flow to the bottom of the ditch with the rains. In the same way, technology can also fail, it’s part of rally driving.
The level of opponents is also dizzying. In addition to Tänak and Evans, as well as Lap, Rovanperä should be able to steer clear of, among others, multi-champion Ogier, who last raced in Jyväskylä in his championship year in 2021. And if it rains really hard, the starting position advantage is suddenly the top of the World Championship With Thierry Neuville.
In Jyväskylä, the margins are not torn in a similar way. At the end of the fight for seconds, the streak that breaks may well overshadow the highlight of the rally.
The second class shows what the future of rallying can be like
This weekend in Jyväskylä, we may witness what the future of the World Rally Championship looks like. There are about 40 cars from the lower series, i.e. rally2 class.
You can easily name a dozen of the drivers who could get on the highest podium for their merits. Among the former top-class drivers, the pre-favorites are included by Oliver Solberg alongside Teemu Suninen, Pierre-Louis Loubet and Gus Greensmith. Other winners in the WRC2 series this season will be there Yohan Rossel, Jan Solans and Nikolai Grjazineven though they don’t score points in Finland.
Emil Lindholm has won the WRC2 series championship and also the Finnish championship. Those who conquered the title of the home series in Jyväskylä will certainly drive hard as well Mikko Heikkilä and Teemu Asunmaa. You can’t forget either Lauri Joonaa and Roope from Korho.
Or Jari-Matti Latvala, who is participating in Jyväskylä for the 19th time already, this time with Toyota’s rally2 equipment.
What is the significance of this listing?
The answer is tantalizing: this is what the entire World Rally Championship could look like in 2027.
At the beginning of the year, the working group of the International Automobile Federation FIA proposed changes in the rules, which were partially withdrawn by the summer. So the World Series still does not have a locked view of which cars will be driven in the series from 2027 onwards.
The goal of the FIA, the series promoter and the teams is to increase the number of cars and teams in the main class. Converting Rally2 cars into the main class has been discussed as an option for a long time. The devices, which cost around 300,000 euros, are also accessible to private drivers.
This year, Jyväskylä is a perfect showcase for those parties who are flying the flag for this future.