Monte Carlo showed what Kalle Rovanperä needs to prepare for in the future – the expert believes in the performances of the “dream couple” | Sport

You can find all the twists and turns of the Monte Carlo rally in Urheilu’s moment-to-moment coverage.

Sebastien Ogier celebrated the ninth victory of his career in the World Rally Championship in Monte Carlo, and overall the tenth number one position in Monte. Kalle Rovanperä opened the season by eventually rising to fourth after struggling.

Sports expert Henri Haapamäki next, closely analyze all the twists and turns of the weekend.

If you wish, you can listen to the story in audio format from Areena by following this link or using the player below.

Where did the rally end?

Ogier was dominant over the weekend, but not flawless. As soon as Thursday, the Prince of Gap had to drive out.

But Friday’s attack in slippery conditions showed mastery. After that, Ogier showed masterful control of the lead as well as well-timed strikes.

The others couldn’t match the overall level, although Ogier didn’t make it easily.

– He handles the car in an incomprehensible way. He is able to find traction in extremely slippery places at the very limit, even if there are “bad” tires underneath. Thursday’s mistake reflects that he had to try his best. No cruising, says Haapamäki.

Ogier hinted in his emotional finish interview that this year’s race could be the last Monte of his career.

What speaks?

Monte Carlo saw one of the most exciting Sundays in recent history. No driving or cornering was seen, but the positions changed and all points were driven to the fullest.

In Sunday’s additional points, four drivers were within three seconds. The Power Stage was also very exciting because of the tire choices.

It was not worth it to be sure, because for this season Saturday’s “conditional points” were removed and the familiar formula returned: the victory of the general competition is rewarded with the largest points pot.

– At the moment, the system is working. The entire rally is raced, and Sunday is still really fast. For example Kalle Rovanperä those points were really important. He got a second chance, Haapamäki emphasizes.

Thinking about the whole season, Rovanperä became a topic of conversation, together Ott Tänak too with.

Both were initially lost with their car on new Hankook tires. Tänak seemed to take over on Saturday, when the Estonian drove like in his best days. He got up from the far back all the way to the podium.

Rovanperä responded to the blow almost as convincingly in Sunday’s challenging conditions and rose back to fourth.

In the World Championship, it has been expected that the two fastest drivers in the series throughout the season would go head-to-head for the championship.

Will this come true when there are more suitable rallies for the “dream couple” ahead?

– This cat’s tail pull has been hoped for. They are both capable of over-the-top performances. From time to time there are good performers in the series, but the fastest are Tänak and Rovanperä.

– This kind of racing of the old federation is in everyone’s mind, Haapamäki reminds.

Who surprised?

Monte Carlo was definitely a surprise Gregoire Munster. M-Sport’s 26-year-old Luxembourger is a paid driver, but at the same time the number one driver of his team.

On Friday, he was the fastest driver all morning. Better things were to come on Saturday, when he clocked the first record time of his career.

Munster also made successful tire choices and rose to a whole new level.

– You can wonder if there would be a driver in the SM series who would surely drive the bottom time in Monte Carlo? There are no such drivers. This gives Munster a signal to itself and to its financiers that this is not just about riding the wind, Haapamäki enthuses.

Unfortunately, there was nothing left of the competition for Munster. On Friday, he had to stop moving due to an electrical fault in the Ford. According to Haapamäki, the overall picture for Munster was not even spoiled by the fact that he made a mistake and drove out.

What about Sami Pajari?

Sami Pajari got a factory contract with Toyota for this season. The Finn drives a Rally1 car in the team all season.

Monte Carlo went under the bench from the reigning WRC2 champion. He flashed his speed in individual intervals when the conditions were clear. Even in slightly more difficult conditions, the going was very careful.

The caution was understandable: Pajari wanted to bring the car to the finish line.

He did not succeed in his goal.

– The run-out took away from the good grade, even though in Monte Carlo the run-out hurts more sensitively than anywhere else, Haapamäki says.

According to his own words, Pajari did not try to run peak times, unlike, say, Munster. That’s why being kicked out leaves a nastier stain on Finns.

Haapamäki believes that a different Pajari will be seen on the road in Sweden.

– If the season had started in Sweden, the result would have been completely different.

Who flopped?

As a flop in the competition, Haapamäki raises the reigning world champion by Thierry Neuville. The Belgian was also a dominant Monte Carlo winner.

Neuville ruined his competition already on Friday.

– The momentum was missing, and no noteworthy performance was seen apart from the runs out, Haapamäki says.

According to Neuville, he received nine World Championship points and a fine of 10,000 euros from the competition. After his exit, he drove with only three rotating tires before stopping to correct the situation.

The “body” of the rally

The word “runki” refers to rallying enthusiasts and spectators. Expert Haapamäki always chooses the most memorable outing from each World Cup rally.

Monte would have had a choice this year, but the choice was aimed at Tänak’s Friday outing. The reason for this was obvious: the Estonian was able to continue, even though it seemed at first glance that the whole rear end of the car was missing.

– You could see the peeling of the car. The cars have tubular bodies, and there is only a little sheet metal on the roof. When the right match comes, the end result is wild: part of the roof sheet was missing, part of the rear bumper, the entire tailgate… And just like that, we drove it to the service, let it rest for half an hour and the car was like new, Haapamäki marvels.