The World Rally Championship in Sardinia ended with a celebration for the Hyundai team, but for Toyota Kalle Rovanperä got to phenomenal speed again on the Power Stage that ended the rally. Rovanperä convincingly won the Power Stage and took third place in the overall competition.
But how on earth does Rovanperä manage to apply his Power Stage top bet? Sports expert Henri Haapamäki provides a simple answer.
– Kalle is currently the best and fastest rally driver in the world. He can make a hard result, no matter what the conditions are. It was again a really dumb bet when the conditions were unbelievably slippery, Haapamäki was amazed.
Even though the trip looked ridiculous, Rovanperä knew what he was doing.
– Kalle said that he didn’t take any big risks. You only had to wait until you finally got good tires under it, Haapamäki explained.
Rovanperä: “It went better than I thought”
Rovanperä said he was surprised by his successes. Even before the race, Rovanperä classified Sardinia as one of his most hated rallies.
– I didn’t expect such good scores here. I thought the weekend was going to be very difficult because of the starting position. However, it went better than I thought. The five additional points in the Power Stage were very important, Rovanperä commented.
Rovanperä knows how to calculate when to strike and when to slow down.
– Very mature driving, considering how young the guy is. Kalle can hold himself back and doesn’t goof around when he is plowing or has other difficulties. He drives his own maximum ride and doesn’t get nervous or fidgety, Haapamäki saw.
The conditions in Sardinia were extremely difficult, especially during Saturday’s special tests.
– We saw even now that many who forcibly sought victory fell into crashes or drove too hard into a puddle of water. World championships come with long-term work, you have to be able to take more than just victories, Haapamäki emphasized.
Rovanperä is already on the run in the World Championship points
Rovanperä has already reached a good distance in the World Cup points, when the season is halfway through. Rovanperä’s points lead over second place Neuville stretched to 25 points.
– It looks good, but the game is by no means clear yet. If there were two interruptions, the situation would be quite different. The situation is as good as it can be at this point, but not rosy yet, Haapamäki reminded.
Rovanperä is on his way to his second consecutive world championship.
– Now it has been seen that Toyota can go hard even in soft gravel rallies. Sardinia gained a lot of confidence when they got a good result, even though the race was not one of Kalle’s favorites. I believe that he will be able to continue at the same level of performance, Haapamäki estimates.
Lapland: “Of course it left a bit of a dent”
Esapekka Lappi already grabbed the third consecutive award place, when the Pieksämäkeläinen drove to second place. Lapland was seriously chasing victory until Toyota Sebastien Ogier drove out of the top at the end of Saturday.
The Hyundai drivers took the double lead, and Lappi was satisfied by Thierry Neuville after second place. Lapland showed its frustration openly, especially on Saturday.
– The feelings have already subsided when I was able to sleep overnight and think about things. Of course, it left a bit of a dent, but this is the situation, Lappi said after the rally.
Haapamäki also noted that Lappi made his disappointment clear to everyone.
– It’s always nasty, but sometimes this is politics. Unfortunately, it says in Lapland’s contract paper in small print that if Neuville is behind, then he (Neuville) must be let past, Haapamäki stated.
Hyundai trusts Neuville, but is it the right choice?
– Hyundai has started this season with such a tactic. But Neuville’s wins will not be enough if Rovanperä continues in this way. That means he gets good points from bad rallies and even full points from the Power Stage sections, Haapamäki punted.
The next round of the World Rally Championship will be held in Midsummer. In Kenya, we are fighting in the Safari rally.