Into the second full day of action and with 142km’s over eight stages the crews had a big challenge ahead of them. Greg and Louis would open the road throughout the day. However, there was some news about a penalty for Ott and Martin which would affect them in the standings. They were given a five-minute penalty after a problem after stage seven yesterday where they pulled away from the stop control and caused some injuries to one of the scrutineers who was near the front of the car and was checking the tyres after he fell over. They also have a suspended points deduction should they have a similar penalty this year.
Onto the action then with SS11 Parkkola 1 – 15.51 km first up and Kalle was fastest from Elfyn and Thierry. The Welshman closed the gap a little to Seb as they battled over sixth overall. Despite opening the road, Ott was sixth fastest, just five and a half seconds from Kalle.
Next up was SS12 Västilä 1 – 18.94 km and Kalle was again fastest from Thierry and Adrien with the rain coming down. The Finn was really in the groove and increasing his lead over the Hyundai teammates. Martins remained to be the best of the M-Sport crews, holding eighth overall.
The first run of SS13 Päijälä 1 – 20.19 km saw Thierry set the pace from Takamoto and Adrien. Kalle was fourth and saw his lead reduce a little over Thierry to 9.3 seconds. Meanwhile Seb saw his lead over Elfyn increase a little as the Frenchman was faster.
Onto the final morning stage then, SS14 Leustu 1 – 16.44 km and Kalle once again set the pace from Adrien and Elfyn. Seb was also very fast and with Sami backing off in the wet conditions the Finn was passed by his teammate for fifth overall. Elfyn was also a bit closer courtesy of his third best time.
After the service break came SS15 Parkkola 2 – 15.51 km and the rain was falling for all crews throughout the stage. Seb used his experience to set the fastest time from Ott and Elfyn. Interesting that Ott’s time as the driver who was second on the road would put him second fastest as well. Elfyn passed Sami in this one for sixth position as well. At M-Sport, Martins had a misted-up windscreen meaning that he was really struggling to see. His co-driver Renaur was using his leg to try and clear the moisture with a cloth on the end of his foot. They had to pull over though and clear it before they could continue. They would lose over two minutes in the end and drop to tenth position.
There would be more drama in SS16 Västilä 2 – 18.94 km behind the top three of Sami, Kalle and Takamoto. The drama was in the Hyundai team as both first Adrien and then Thierry suffered right front punctures. They were also both caused at the same piece of road. They both fell from second and third to sixth and seventh positions. Seb was now in third with teammate Takamoto in second place, whilst Elfyn and Sami was fourth and fifth.
Onto the penultimate stage then, SS17 Päijälä 2 – 20.19 km and again Kalle was fastest from Thierry and Elfyn. The Welshman had now reduced the gap to Seb who held third overall to just 1.9 seconds. Josh was holding eighth overall, the best placed M-Sport crew.
Onto the final stage then, SS18 Leustu 2 – 16.44 km in which Kalle was fastest from Takamoto and Thierry. Elfyn was quicker than Seb as well and took four tenths of a second from third placed Seb, now just one and a half seconds from his teammate.
Let’s take a look at the top positions and hear from the drivers.
Classification after Day Two
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Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Kalle Rovanperä
“It’s been a super good day for us and the team. This afternoon the conditions were tricky in many places, but we were able to control the pace quite well. The feeling in the car was a bit more comfortable and we could still do some good times without any big risks, which is always a good sign. It will be a tricky Sunday on such a demanding stage. Everybody will be pushing hard, and of course we want to secure the win, but we also need as many points as we can for the championship.”
Takamoto Katsuta
“There were some up and downs today but at the end we came back in second place so I must be happy with that. I have mostly just been trying to manage the risk. It’s not been easy to find the balance between that approach and fighting against Seb and Elfyn, but it worked out well. Tomorrow with Super Sunday and the Power Stage, I think the decision will be easier: just go flat-out!”
Sébastien Ogier
“I don’t feel that I did a fantastic job today; the pace was still missing a little bit. The car is quite OK to drive but I’m somehow lacking the little things which allow me to drive on the limit, and that’s been costing time on these extremely fast roads. I still have a little idea for tomorrow and hopefully it can be a good one. Tomorrow is all about Ouninpohja: the most beautiful stage of the season and the perfect showdown for the rally. It’s always fun to drive and I’m expecting it to be spectacular with everyone pushing for points.”
Elfyn Evans
“It’s been a good day out there for us. It’s been a tight fight with our team-mates with not a lot to separate us on most of the stages. The conditions were tricky in the first stage of the afternoon with the rain, so I was happy to get through that, and otherwise it’s been a reasonably solid and fun day and we’re looking forward to tomorrow. Ouninpohja is a stage that needs a lot of concentration, but we’ll just do the best we can and I’m sure it will be a lot of fun.”
Sami Pajari
“I think it has been another quite solid day for us today. We had some really close fights with Seb especially in the morning. In the afternoon I was obviously a bit careful in the rain on the first one of the loop, and then we did the fastest time on the second one. So not too bad overall and I’m still enjoying it and learning too. Tomorrow the main aim is to finish but I would like to be quick as well. Ouninpohja is such a cool stage to drive, and if you are not fully on it you are kind of wasting it, so I hope to enjoy it.”
Hyundai Motorsport
Thierry Neuville
“Obviously, we are very disappointed. We were on course for a good result here that could have put us back in the championship fight, but after our puncture our hopes are lost. We will try our best tomorrow but with our road position and the fight going on between the cars behind us, it will be difficult.”
Adrien Fourmaux
“It has been a frustrating afternoon, with both Thierry and I getting a puncture on the same corner. It’s really disappointing for the team, and so now our sole target is to push for Super Sunday points. We expect it to be drier so the cars behind will have cleaner lines, but there were big gaps on this stage last year so we will try our best and see what we can do.”
Round 09, Rally Finland
30 July – 03 of August 2025
Photographer: Austral
Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Ott Tänak
“Our plan was to drive through and get the mileage today. In the showery conditions, it was difficult to find the right rhythm to attack on the stages. Looking ahead to Super Sunday, it’s going to be a nice stage – a new one for me, but still, we know it will be a challenge. Opening the road won’t give us too many chances, but we will try to enjoy ourselves at least.”
Oliver Solberg
“It’s hard not to smile when you are driving on these roads – they are so much fun, especially when you can see where you are going! This morning was super-tricky with the wiper issue, but we made it through.
“Of course, Elliott [Edmondson, co-driver] and me are disappointed not to be fighting for another win here, but sometimes this is the way the sport goes. There was nothing we could do for yesterday. It is like it is.
“As well as winning stages today, it’s positive to be out again taking experience of these roads and these conditions. I don’t have so much experience of fast gravel in this car. I did some testing earlier in the year, but then we were focusing more on the rougher, more technical gravel rallies.
“My test for Estonia was in the Rally1 car, which is different to this car. I’ve learned lots today, which has been useful. And tomorrow, we have Ouninpohja coming twice – that will be a cool Sunday.”
Sunday
Well, just one day left and with two runs of the amazing Ouninpohja stage at 23.98km’s giving a total final day of 47.96km’s there is still a serious amount of kilometres left in the rally. The question is can Kalle and Jonne take a first win on home soil for themselves and also the first win for a Finnish crew since Esapekka and Janne won in 2017 also for Toyota. Also, can Elfyn pass Seb for third place?
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