Warren Nel

Well, onto the final day and we had two runs of Ouninpohja to enjoy. That would give the crews 47.96km’s to enjoy over an iconic stage. Ott would open the road throughout the two stages and would hope that they could take some points in not just the power stage but also with the points from the Sunday standings.

 

Well into SS19 Ouninpohja 1 – 23.98 km they went and Elfyn set the pace from teammates Seb and Kalle. Of course, with Ott opening the road he’d only manage to set the eighth fastest time, but this did mean he’d moved closer to the top ten. With Elfyn setting the pace ahead of Seb he further reduced the gap to third overall to just over one second.

 

Onto the final stage then, and there was drama for Ott and Adrien who both got punctures in the stage. Ott had a huge spin in top gear which was caused by the tyre delaminating. Ironically the demise of Adrien from the top ten meant that Ott finished in tenth place. The top five was Kalle, Takamoto, Seb, Thierry and Elfyn. Fastest over the two stages, Kalle took victory from Takamoto and Seb.

 

Let’s take a look at the final finishing positions and hear from the drivers.

 

Final Overall Classification – Rally Finland

1	K. Rovanperä	J. Halttunen	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	2:21:51.4
2	T. Katsuta	A. Johnston	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	+39.2
3	S. Ogier	V. Landais	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	+45.1
4	E. Evans	S. Martin	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	+48.1
5	S. Pajari	M. Salminen	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	+1:18.8
6	T. Neuville	M. Wydaeghe	Hyundai i20 N Rally1	+2:01.5
7	J. McErlean	E. Treacy	Ford Puma Rally1	+4:07.4
8	M. Sesks	R. Francis	Ford Puma Rally1	+5:17.2
9	G. Munster	L. Louka	Ford Puma Rally1	+5:24.9
10	O. Tänak	M. Järveoja	Hyundai i20 N Rally1	+7:38.4

Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT

Kalle Rovanperä

“It is an amazing feeling to win Rally Finland. It has been a long time coming, but with so much support from the fans every year, I feel super happy to win in front of them. This year everybody did a crazy amount of work to make it happen. Jonne and everybody in the team have been fantastic and we were pushing the whole weekend. It’s also a historical moment for Toyota to fill positions one to five, so everybody has done a great job. It was an intense final day on one of the most demanding stages to get right and we had to push really hard to take the points like we did.”

Takamoto Katsuta

“I’m very happy to be back on the podium and finish in second place in Finland, which is such an important place for me and the team. ‘Kiitos paljon’ to all the Finnish fans who are cheering for me a lot. Huge thanks also to the team who are always supporting me, and especially Aaron who has been doing a great job. I’m really happy for the team and also that Kalle could finally win here after so much bad luck: we promised each other before the rally that we could be on the podium together. I can be happy with my performance this weekend and the car was working very well.”

 

Sébastien Ogier

“This is an amazing result, especially here in Finland where the team is based. I’m sure there will be a big party tonight! It’s well deserved because the team has been pushing hard the whole year and I’m glad to be a part of such a historic result. I’m also really happy for Kalle and Jonne after last year when they already deserved to win. It wasn’t the smoothest weekend for me and I was struggling a bit to keep up with the pace. But after a lot of changes during the weekend the setup was suiting me better today and it was a fantastic feeling to drive this car on this epic stage.”

 

Elfyn Evans

“It’s a really nice result for the team to have all five cars in the top five. On my side I’m a bit disappointed how the final day turned out. It was an exciting format, and we had a really good run the first time through Ouninpohja. The Power Stage didn’t go quite so brilliantly. I had a couple of places in the stage where I couldn’t get turned in like I wanted and lost too much time. Otherwise, it was a good stage, but with such fine margins, we missed out on quite a lot of extra points. But we’ll continue onto the next one.”

 

Sami Pajari

“It’s just amazing to be part of this result for Toyota. The team was really on it this weekend, so it’s really well deserved by everybody. It has been a really good weekend for us, taking a few stage wins and otherwise having some solid pace. Today was also nice driving a stage like Ouninpohja, even if we were focused mainly on just securing the result. I have really enjoyed the whole weekend, so thanks to the team and all the fans for their support.”

 

 

Hyundai Motorsport

Thierry Neuville

“We were at the front of the field for most of the weekend, but suddenly we found ourselves out of the fight and it was hard to come back from that today. In the end, we took three points from Super Sunday, which was the maximum we could do. It’s hard when we are all giving it everything we have, but things are just not going our way. All we could do is have some fun in the Power Stage and look forward to the next rounds.”

Ott Tänak

“A difficult weekend, but what’s done is done, and now we focus on the next rounds. We’re going into rougher gravel events where we were very competitive at the start of the season, so I am expecting to be back on the pace again. The team had some small troubles that had big consequences, but that’s rallying – it can be cruel, but it is the nature of this sport. The championship is still open, so the fight is still on.”

 

Adrien Fourmaux

“In terms of performance, it has been a good rally for us, but a difficult one in terms of the result. We were unlucky with punctures on Saturday afternoon and again on the Power Stage, which stopped us from scoring good points. That aside, I’m happy with how we performed in Finland; there are a lot of positives for us to take into the upcoming rallies, where we should have a chance to score good points for the manufacturers’ and drivers’ championships.”

 

 

M-Sport Ford WRT

Josh McErlean

“It’s been a crazy rally – honestly, it’s been one of the most enjoyable so far this season. Coming to Finland in a Rally1 car was always going to be something special, and to experience these conditions and these stages – especially Ouninpohja today – has been really nice. Finishing as the top M-Sport car and seventh overall is a great way to end the experience. I’m really looking forward now to a short break before heading to South America. A big thanks to the team and the Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy for everything they do – let’s get ready for the next one.”

Mārtiņš Sesks

“It’s been a real pleasure to be part of the team and to be involved with a World Rally Team – getting the kind of experience I never thought I’d have. It’s been interesting; there have been some ups and downs, but the season started well, and I think we can end the programme on a good note. Now we’ll see what the future brings.”

 

Grégoire Munster

“I made a couple of mistakes on Friday which compromised the rest of our weekend, but we made some good improvements overall. We found some solid gains on the car side that will help us in Chile – and maybe Paraguay too. There are still plenty of positives to take. We had a blast driving through the Power Stage in Ouninpohja; despite a puncture, we really enjoyed it. Now we’ve got a break, and we’ll come back stronger for the rest of the season.”

 

Romet Jürgenson WRC2

“Rally Finland has definitely been a positive experience. Result-wise, it might not be quite as strong as what we achieved in Sardinia and Estonia, but when you look at the level here, I think losing only 0.35 seconds per kilometre is a decent result. Overall, the season has been really solid – no major mistakes – and we’ve definitely improved our rally craft, which is a big positive. Working with M-Sport has been a privilege, and hopefully we’ll be back again next year.”

 

 

Oliver Solberg

“Like you can imagine,” said Oliver, “the change from emotions is quite big from Estonia to here in Finland. Winning in Tartu with the factory TOYOTA GAZOO Racing team was like a dream come true for me and Elliott.

 

“Driving the Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 was the best moment in the best car in my life, it was incredible. I love the Yaris Rally2, but I think you can understand that it’s not quite the same. This is a rally I really enjoy, and we won here for the last two years, so I was really hoping for a similar result this time around.

“There really wasn’t anything we could do about the rock on Saturday. It just kicked the car out of the ruts and sent us to the ditch. It’s tough when this kind of thing happens. The sport can give you some incredible high moments, but it can also hurt you a little bit. On Saturday morning, we lost more time with a problem with the wipers – the rain was so bad we couldn’t see much at all.

 

“What does this mean for our [WRC2] championship? Let’s see. Like always with this series, it’s quite hard seeing where everybody is sitting and where the biggest fight is coming from; some of the drivers still have more possibilities to score points.

 

“Like always, I want to say a very big thanks to everybody from the team at Printsport for preparing the car so well for us.

 

“Now, we look forward to the next round in Paraguay. This is going to be a big adventure for us all. A first time in a new country is always really exciting. I’m looking forward to discovering the roads, the people and, of course, the incredible South American passion for motorsport.”

 

 

Summary

Well, Finland finally has a new home winner with Kalle and Jonne taking their first ever home win. It was a great win for the pairing and has really brought them into the title fight.

 

For Takamoto and Aaron a second podium of the year was well deserved. They took a number of stage wins and were right there when the two Hyundai crews had their problems.

 

Finally, Seb and Vincent had a good drive to third and another podium to add to their partnership.

2025 FIA World Rally Championship for Manufacturers’ Standings
After round 9

1	Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team	458
2	Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team	371
3	M-Sport Ford World Rally Team	129
4	Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team 2	85

 

 

2025 FIA World Rally Championship for Drivers’ Standings
After round 9

1	E. Evans	176
2	K. Rovanperä	173
3	S. Ogier	163
4	O. Tänak	163
5	T. Neuville	125
6	T. Katsuta	87
7	A. Fourmaux	71
8	O. Solberg	52
9	S. Pajari	48
10	G. Munster	21

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

1 K. Rovanperä J. Halttunen Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 2:01:28.8 2 T. Katsuta A. Johnston Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +36.1 3 S. Ogier V. Landais Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +42.9 4 E. Evans S. Martin Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +44.4 5 S. Pajari M. Salminen Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +59.2 6 T. Neuville M. Wydaeghe Hyundai i20 N Rally1 +1:54.7 7 A. Fourmaux A. Coria Hyundai i20 N Rally1 +2:23.7 8 J. McErlean E. Treacy Ford Puma Rally1 +3:28.3 9 G. Munster L. Louka Ford Puma Rally1 +4:27.9 10 M. Sesks R. Francis Ford Puma Rally1 +4:38.7

 

 

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.”

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?

The first full day of this iconic rally started early for the crews and teams with stage two at just after eight in the morning local time. The previous evening the first stage was run and the top three was Ott from Thierry and Seb.

 

First up was SS2 Laukaa 1 – 17.96 km and it was Sami who set the pace in this one from his teammates Takamoto and Kalle. Takamoto jumped up five positions into the overall lead, with Kalle into second, whilst the stage winner moved into fourth. Of course, Ott who was opening the road dropped to eighth position. Martins was the leading M-Sport crew holding ninth overall after climbing two positions.

 

Next up was SS3 Saarikas 1 – 15.78 km and Kalle was fastest this time from Adrien and Sami. The Finn moved into the lead, whilst Adrien was up to second place. Takamoto fell from the lead into fifth place, but things were very close at the top with less than four seconds covering the top five.

 

Into SS4 Myhinpää 1 – 14.47 km and Kalle was again fastest from Elfyn and Adrien third. It was a good time from Elfyn who made the most of his road position despite being second into the stage. The gaps were widening a little with Kalle now four seconds ahead of second placed Adrien. Greg did overshoot at a chicane after losing the rear but completed the stage.

 

The final morning stage then before service, SS5 Ruuhimäki 1 – 7.76 km saw Sami set the fastest time again from Takamoto and Thierry. It was so close though that they both moved past Thierry pushing him down to fifth place. The overall top three was now Kalle from Adrien and Sami. Further back Elfyn’s position in the top six was coming under threat from his teammate Seb who had reduced the gap between them to just four tenths of a second.

 

After the service break SS6 Laukaa 2 – 17.96 km was next and Takamoto was fastest this time from Thierry and Kalle. The Japanese star saw this pace lift him two positions and into second overall. He’d even reduced Kalle’s lead to 3.3 seconds. The two drivers who lost out were Thierry and Sami and they were now in fourth and fifth overall. Ott continued to struggle and now Martins was getting closer to the Estonian with just seven tenths of a second between them.

Kalle came back to the top of the stage timesheets with the fastest time in SS7 Saarikas 2 – 15.78 km from Sami and Adrien. Thierry moved back into second overall pushing Takamoto down one place. There were changes further down as Seb passed Elfyn for sixth place and also Martins passed Ott moving into seventh place overall. The Latvian was really finding the pace after setting the sixth best time. Sadly, we lost Oliver and Elliott in this one from WRC2 as they rolled out after hitting a rock that was on the line.

 

Into SS8 Myhinpää 2 – 14.47 km and incredibly Adrien and Kalle set an identical stage time with Thierry and Seb doing the same for the second fastest time! Adrien moved into third overall whilst Takamoto again fell to fourth place albeit on the same overall time as the Frenchman. The gap between Seb and Elfyn was growing, the gap now 5.1 seconds as they maintained sixth and seventh overall.

 

Onto the final proper stage of the day then, SS9 Ruuhimäki 2 – 7.76 km and Thierry was quickest from Seb and Kalle. The Finn remained the overall leader from Thierry and Adrien. Takamoto was just a single tenth of a second behind Adrien.

 

The final stage then a second run for SS10 Harju 2 – 2.58 km completed the day with Adrien going fastest from Thierry and Takamoto. Less than ten seconds covered the top four.

 

Let’s take a look at the top positions and hear from the drivers.

 

Classification after Day One

1 K. Rovanperä J. Halttunen Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 56:31.6 2 T. Neuville M. Wydaeghe Hyundai i20 N Rally1 +4.9 3 A. Fourmaux A. Coria Hyundai i20 N Rally1 +7.7 4 T. Katsuta A. Johnston Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +8.1 5 S. Pajari M. Salminen Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +15.7 6 S. Ogier V. Landais Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +17.6 7 E. Evans S. Martin Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +26.0 8 M. Sesks R. Francis Ford Puma Rally1 +40.5 9 J. McErlean E. Treacy Ford Puma Rally1 +1:06.0 10 O. Tänak M. Järveoja Hyundai i20 N Rally1 +1:07.2

Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT

Kalle Rovanperä

“It’s been a good Friday for us. It’s nice to be fighting for the top positions and there’s a lot of people cheering for us, so we’re enjoying it. The feeling behind the wheel is still maybe not the best, but we have been pushing hard and we have been able to be fast: we’ve been doing a lot of work to find more pace and it seems to be better. This afternoon was tricky after the rain came in but still we managed to do some good times and hold onto the lead, and hopefully we can continue in a good way tomorrow.”

Takamoto Katsuta

“I had quite a good feeling from the start this morning. I struggled a bit on some stages, but we made some small changes on the car, and it felt better straightaway. When the rain came for the afternoon I felt it was time to push I immediately had a good feeling and set the fastest time. After that the feeling was still good, there were a few tricky ruts and bumps, and I lost some time from that. But still the gaps are small, there’s a long way to go and I’ll keep focused and keep pushing.”

 

Sami Pajari

“It’s been a really solid day for us. The morning was really good, with two stage wins and to be up in third place overall, and still there were some places where I felt I could improve. This afternoon the conditions were not so easy, but still, we are not too far from the lead. Everyone is really close and it’s hard to make big differences. It’s really cool to be in the fight on our home rally, and it’s nice how much the crowd is cheering, so I’m sure there’s another two days of enjoyment to come.”

 

Sébastien Ogier

“The conditions haven’t been easy today. This morning in the dry there was a bit of cleaning for us, and maybe I wasn’t committed enough in a few places and lost a bit of time. This afternoon the rain was also a bit challenging for those of us at the front, but it wasn’t too bad. There’s a couple of things that could have been a bit better, but we’re still not that far from the podium places and that’s what we need to fight for tomorrow.”

 

Elfyn Evans

“We had a good start this morning. There was a little bit of cleaning with the loose gravel like we expected after the hot and dry weather. I think we were pretty strong considering and the times were really close. Unfortunately, the afternoon was quite tricky after the rain with a lot of standing water in the ruts, so the conditions didn’t really work in our favour. So, a bit disappointed with the day overall, but tomorrow’s a big day and there can still be some surprises with the weather, so we’ll just keep doing the best we can.”

 

 

Hyundai Motorsport

Thierry Neuville

“I really enjoyed this afternoon. The car was working well, and while Kalle is still very fast, we are not far away. It was challenging in the ruts, there’s usually standing water, so you’re having to look quite far ahead to judge the risk, while also staying present in the moment with the car. It wasn’t easy, but I’m pretty happy with how we’ve done today. If we can carry that into the new sections and stages tomorrow, we will be fine.”

Adrien Fourmaux

“I’m happy with how today has gone and the pace we have had in these tricky conditions. We managed to keep Takamoto behind us, which is really positive for us. I was a bit faster than Thierry in the dry, but he is faster on the wet, so I’m hoping we have drier weather tomorrow! However, we are expecting some rain, but I think having a later road position will be to our advantage in that regard.”

 

Ott Tänak

“With the roads improving with every car on the road this morning, we just didn’t have the pace to over-drive the deficit as first on the road. It was unfortunate that the car snapped under braking on SS7, and the impact caused damage to our cooling system. We then couldn’t stop as the engine was overheating, so it was difficult to come through the remaining stages this afternoon.”

 

 

Oliver Solberg

“Coming so soon after winning Rally Estonia, this is kind of hard to take,” said Oliver. “The change of emotion is quite incredible in less than two weeks. Really, there was nothing we could do here – we were committed to the line, the rock kicked the car out of the ruts and into the ditch.

“It caught me really by surprise. It’s really frustrating – it’s not like I was pushing super-hard and taking big risks. I’m sorry for the team, but let’s hope we can be back tomorrow.”

 

Saturday

The second full day of action will continue with 142km’s over eight stages. Can Kalle keep the lead or will those behind move past him?

It’s time for the quick and spectacular one with the ninth round of this years championship. It was an incredible drive last time out with Oliver and Elliott taking their first overall win. This time they will be back into their Rally 2 spec Yaris and looking to extend their lead in the WRC2 championship.

Of course, there was a change in the championship leader as Ott and Martin took the lead of the championship by a single point from Elfyn and Scott. It means that the 2019 world champions will open the road throughout Friday.

This years edition of this true classic has 307km’s over twenty stages. The iconic Ouninpohja also returns on Sunday as the final two stages. Saturday is the longest day with 142km’s over eight stages.

Weekend at a Glance

• Rally Finland kickstarts on Thursday evening with Harju (SS1, 2.58km), bringing FIA WRC action to the streets of Jyväskylä.
• Nine stages form Finland’s Friday: Laukaa (SS2/6, 17.96km), Saarikas (SS3/7, 15.78km), Myhinpää (SS4/8, 14.47km), Ruuhimaki (SS5/9, 7.76km) followed by another trip to Harju (SS10, 2.58km).
• Saturday presents the longest day of the weekend, with eight stages covering a competitive distance of 142.16km.
• Two loops of the infamous Ouninpohja (SS19/20, 23.98km) round out the 2025 edition of Rally Finland, with the second run acting as the weekend’s Power Stage.

Let’s hear from the drivers.

 

Hyundai Motorsport

Ott Tänak

“For me, Rally Finland is the best event on the WRC calendar. It’s all about pure performance; it’s very demanding for the car as well as the crews. Setup is crucial to performing well because of the mix of high speeds and jumps; you need grip and stability, and to be absolutely precise with where you place the car at all times. The margins are so small that if something isn’t working, or you’re not on the pace, it’s the end of the game. Sunday will be a new challenge, with just one long stage we haven’t driven for a few years, and it is a proper test.”

Thierry Neuville

“Rally Finland is a special event. I consider Finland to be the home of rallying because it has some of the greatest roads that you can drive a rally car on. It’s not the most technical event, but it has very fast stages and a lot of blind corners. We’ve been competing here for many years, so we know what to expect, but you always want to be in the fight there. With just two runs of Ouninpohja on Sunday it’s going to be a pure sprint, so we need to make sure we know the roads as best as we can – we’ll be flat out. We have some positive momentum from our podium in Estonia, and we want to finish on the top steps again in Finland.”

 

Adrien Fourmaux

“Rally Finland is a part of the WRC’s legacy; it’s an unmissable event. The stages are fantastic and so is the atmosphere thanks to the fans. You have to fight in Finland from the very first stage; the gaps between drivers are small, the roads are fast, and you can’t miss an apex. It can be really demanding in the car because you have to push in every corner, and there are so many crests and jumps – particularly in this year’s Power Stage. I finished on the podium in Finland last year, and I want to replicate that this year too.”

 

 

Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT

Elfyn Evans

“Finland is a brilliant rally and a real highlight of the season for me, so I’m really looking forward to it. Nothing quite compares to the feeling of driving on the Finnish stages, especially when you’re at one with the car. While it’s a similar event to Estonia in terms of speed, the surface and the character of the roads are quite different, so our test in Finland this week was important to try and find the best setup and feeling behind the wheel. It’s always a really enjoyable rally so the biggest thing is to enjoy the driving and hopefully a good result can follow.”

Kalle Rovanperä

“As our home event, going into Rally Finland always feels special with a lot of excitement and support from the fans. We’ve had good chances to win there with good pace in the last two years and didn’t quite manage to do it. We continue to work hard with the team to improve upon the pace that we’ve had on gravel so far this year, and we’ve been trying some more new ideas in testing for this event. Of course, we will try to enjoy the whole week, keep pushing as much as we can and do our maximum to get a top result.”

 

Sébastien Ogier

“It will be nice for me to do Rally Finland again this year. I had a great rally there last year, taking my second win after a couple of years away, so it felt like a good idea to add it to my schedule once more. We’ll try to have fun on the beautiful Finnish roads and secure a good result on the home event of the team. It will be the first really fast rally that I’ve driven this year, but we’ve had good performance on gravel so far this season and I’ll still have the chance to test in Finland and get back up to speed before the start of the rally.”

 

Takamoto Katsuta

“Finland is a special place for me: I lived there for many years and learned so much and have many friends there, so I think of this event as being a second home rally for me. I usually have a very good feeling on the Finnish stages and it’s of course an important rally for the team as well. It was really nice for me to finish on the podium there two years ago and I want to aim to have an even better rally this time. I hope we can make another step forward with our performance and will just try to push as much as I can and enjoy.”

 

Sami Pajari

“Rally Finland has always been a really special rally for me – right back to the first WRC event I drove six years ago. To drive in front of friends and family is a nice feeling and the roads themselves are really cool to drive in any car. To be able to drive them with a Rally1 car still feels like a dream for me, even though I did it once already last year. You always want to try and do better than the last time, but it’s never as easy as that and I’m not adding too much pressure on myself. I’m just really looking forward to it and will try my best to do a good rally.”

 

 

M-Sport Ford WRT

Grégoire Munster

“We just want to bounce back from the result we had in Estonia with some more positive progress next week. Finland is a rally I really like – the stages are fast and flowing, and Estonia was good preparation for it. Let’s see how the weather turns out; it can be very variable, especially if we get some rain!”

Josh McErlean

“Rally Finland is an event I’ve been looking forward to ever since we got the opportunity to compete at Rally1 level. It’s a special feeling to be taking on these iconic Finnish roads in such a car. This weekend is about taking a step forward – trusting in ourselves, committing fully to the pace, and showing what we can do with this package. The key will be confidence and rhythm, and I’m ready to enjoy every moment of the ride through the forests.”

 

Mārtiņš Sesks

“It will be interesting to see how it goes in Finland. I competed here previously in JWRC six years ago, so it’s quite a new rally for me again. Rally Finland is one of the most legendary events in WRC history, and I’ve been spectating since I was a child, watching and wondering what it would be like to drive a top-level WRC car – and now we’re here! We’ll see how it goes, but I’m excited for this one.”

 

Romet Jürgenson (WRC2)

“I think we can go into Rally Finland with a positive mindset after a strong result in Estonia. The confidence is growing step by step, which is really important for these fast and flowing roads. What I remember from last year is that it’s an amazing rally – definitely one of the most enjoyable I’ve done – and I don’t expect anything different this time!”

 

 

Oliver Solberg (WRC2)

“Finland is a rally everybody loves,” said Oliver. “It’s such a big event, such an iconic rally. The whole town in Jyväskylä gets taken over by it – I love that. And, of course, the speed is a really nice part of this one.

“There’s nothing quite like flying the rally car through the forest. We’ve had good times here in the last two years and we want to continue in that way. We made a good test last week, everything was working well – as you can expect from a Toyota which is run by Printsport. The team has been fantastic this year, we have such a good rhythm going with this car.

 

“Like always, the fight will be big in Finland, there are a lot of really strong crews in Rally2, and we need to be ready for them. And, of course, we always see a lot of very fast local drivers coming – this is something which hasn’t changed down the years.

 

“As you can imagine, it took me a moment to come down from what Elliott and me achieved in Estonia just last week. We’re so grateful to everybody who made that happen, everybody in the TGR World Rally Team. That was something incredible, but that’s done now. We are looking forward and that means getting back to the fight to keep Toyota at the top in WRC2. It would be an incredible result for the GR Yaris Rally2 to win back-to-back WRC2 titles in its first two years, that’s what we’re aiming for.”

 

Summary

Well, this will be a superfast event with some spectacular driving. Road position will be key to winning this rally and that’s why when looking at the possible winner and others in the battle for the podium it is hard to not look at the those who have stood on the podium this year and will have a road advantage.

 

The action gets underway with shakedown on Thursday morning and the first stage is later that day.

Onto the final day then of this rally and with Oliver and co-driver Elliott leading by almost twenty-two seconds would they be able to hold this gap on the final day? With only three stages remaining and two of them run twice could the Hyundai crews behind pass the Toyota crew. Greg and Louis would open the road again, courtesy of being the last top-class car.

 

First up then was SS18 Hellenurme – 11.79 km a new and single run stage. The predicted rain for the final day had arrived as well. What would this mean for the later crews as invariably when gravel roads get wet and perhaps also have standing water and puddles on the line the road and stage gets slower. Elfyn closed on Takamoto as he took six seconds from his teammate, the gap now just 5.2 seconds between them. However, the rain did not fall on the whole stage, just certain parts and as the top crews made their way through the sun was out again. Ultimately Oliver set the pace from Ott, whilst Kalle found some pace on the wet stage to set the third best time. Thierry gained a ten second penalty for a jump start, thus giving Ott a gap over his teammate.

 

Next was SS19 Kääriku 1 – 24.20 km and Oliver was again fastest from Kalle and Ott third. There was a change further back as Elfyn passed his teammate Takamoto for sixth after setting the same time as Thierry. Takamoto was 5.7 slower than Elfyn who now had a small advantage of half a second.

 

Now to the final stage then, SS20 Kääriku 2[Power Stage] – 24.20 km and Kalle set the pace which the top three could not beat. Ott and Oliver were second and third fastest, whilst Thierry and Elfyn completed the points scorers in the power stage. Oliver and Elliott had secured a dream result though and one that will go down in the history books. They took the lead on Friday morning and won nine stages, their first at the top of this sport. They were also never out of the top three either apart from stage one and stage eleven.

 

Let’s take a look at the final finishing positions and hear from the drivers.

Final Overall Classification – Rally Estonia

1 O. Solberg E. Edmondson Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 2:36:35.1 2 O. Tänak M. Järveoja Hyundai i20 N Rally1 +25.2 3 T. Neuville M. Wydaeghe Hyundai i20 N Rally1 +48.3 4 K. Rovanperä J. Halttunen Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +55.6 5 A. Fourmaux A. Coria Hyundai i20 N Rally1 +1:33.0 6 E. Evans S. Martin Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +1:43.4 7 S. Pajari M. Salminen Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +2:55.6 8 M. Sesks R. Francis Ford Puma Rally1 +3:36.0 9 J. McErlean E. Treacy Ford Puma Rally1 +5:29.8 10 G. Munster L. Louka Ford Puma Rally1 +5:57.5

Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT

Oliver Solberg

“It’s been the most amazing weekend. I’m feeling so overwhelmingly happy, after so many years of dreaming and working for this moment. I want to say a big thank you to Toyota for giving me this opportunity and the chance to prove myself and have fun driving this amazing car. Thank you to the test team who helped me get so comfortable. I also never thought I’d get to celebrate on a podium with Juha, who has been a hero of mine since I was a kid and one I’ve been looking up to together with my father. Now this weekend he has been supporting me so well, keeping me calm and telling me what to do. I’ve never had such a good time in my life, so thank you.”

“For the rally itself, Elliott and me were just in our bubble. We were doing our thing and driving our own event. I could feel in the car everything was good and working well, but I didn’t know what this meant for the times. When we won the first stage on Friday, that was so special, but then we had to focus completely again and drive the next one and the next one. We kept doing that, we didn’t get distracted. We kept driving and then we won!

“I’m so proud of what we’ve achieved,” said Elliott. “Like Oliver said, we did our thing. We didn’t get distracted by anything. From the test, through the recce and all the way through the rally, we were keeping our heads down and doing our job. It’s a very special feeling, what a day and what a rally. Again, I would like to thank everybody at Toyota who made this happen and, of course, Oliver!”

Kalle Rovanperä

“We kept pushing this weekend and trying everything we can, and at least we could take full points from the Power Stage. Overall though it’s clear that I don’t currently have the pace we want on gravel with this year’s package. There are no excuses, and we will keep working on it with the team, keep pushing and trying to find something more for Rally Finland, which we will look forward to like every year.”

Elfyn Evans

“It’s been a tough weekend. Of course, our road position did hamper us a bit on Friday, but I also think we didn’t have the speed to challenge like we wanted to. We tried our best today and scored a few extra points, but we can’t be too satisfied at the end of the weekend. I’m looking forward to Rally Finland like always and we’ll keep working together with the team to find a bit more speed there.”

Sami Pajari

“It’s been a tricky rally. Our chances for a good result went with the issue on the first forest stage on Friday, but at least the team could solve the problem and after that I’ve been able to enjoy it and have some good times. The start position was tricky for the last two days so it was more about learning and trying to take all the experience, which is still the main target this year. The feeling was quite good and I’m looking forward to going again at Rally Finland.”

Takamoto Katsuta

“We have been managing something on the car since yesterday and unfortunately today it got worse, so the decision was taken to retire before the Power Stage. Performance-wise we were not so far away here but it was enough in this kind of very fast event that we couldn’t challenge at the front. We will keep working to make another step forward for Rally Finland which is important for myself and the team.”

 

Hyundai Motorsport

Ott Tänak

“I think we got the best out of this weekend – with or without my mistake on Saturday morning, Oliver was still difficult to beat. I expected a challenging weekend, and I knew it would be tough to get the most out of these Estonian roads. They’re super-fast and have some big jumps, so you need a good balance and a perfect rhythm, and we learned a lot here to take to Finland. I’m happy to be going there in the championship lead, and we will see what it’s like opening the road.”

Thierry Neuville

“Generally, I am quite happy with how this weekend went for us. From Friday I felt comfortable in the car, but we still managed to find some areas for improvement that we can work on. We got a bit closer to the championship lead, but we still lost a couple of points compared to Ott and Kalle. It wasn’t a perfect weekend, but nevertheless we are happy to be back on the podium. With Finland so close, we are going to work on the areas we need to improve on and see how far we can take it there.”

Adrien Fourmaux

“We had a difficult first stage on Friday morning, and then we found the pace again and kept it all the way through Saturday, so there are a lot of positives to take from that. On the first stage this morning I unfortunately damaged the front of my car, and that meant I lost a lot of balance throughout the rest of the day. It was hard to fight for the Sunday points, but we largely stayed ahead of Evans to play the team game for Ott’s championship.”

 

M-Sport Ford WRT

Mārtiņš Sesks

“It has been a really nice event; I think for us that’s the biggest take-away from the weekend. It’s been an impressive weekend for our sport and the fans have been amazing, it was really emotional in places to see all the flags. This is the main thing for us, now we go away to focus on Finland.”

Josh McErlean

“It’s been a nice weekend and really cool to experience these roads in the Rally1 car, it’s quite surprising what they can do and how fast you can commit to the roads! You have to really shift your mind so you can be on the pace straight away, but I think we can build on that going into Finland. It’s a proper childhood dream to go to Finland and compete at the top level of the WRC. So let’s go enjoy it and hopefully step up the pace there.”

Grégoire Munster

“At the end of Rally Estonia, it’s not the result we wanted for sure, but this is due to a puncture on Friday and my overshoots in a few places, but I would say that considering we’ve been opening the road we’ve done quite well. Rather than changing the set up too much, we were just trying to drive and gain experience and mileage before going to Finland. We’ve had a lot of fans on these incredibly fast roads, and overall, we’ve really enjoyed the week.”

Romet Jürgenson, fifth WRC2

“The goal for us was to be in the top five here in Estonia and we managed that, so that’s a really big positive. We showed some good pace in some stages, and we got our first two WRC2 stage wins as well, which is a good achievement and was one of the goals for this year too. The speed in general was a bit up and down, so we need to analyse and see where we can improve, but overall, we can be really happy.

A big thanks to the whole M-Sport team and the FIA as well, this is a great opportunity for me, and it’s been one of my dreams to do this rally in WRC2 for a long time.”

 

Summary

What can I say about the drive by Oliver and Elliott. It was sublime. They’d done one test of two days recently and in their first drive at the top level of the sport for over two years. They made it look like they’ve never been away. They did benefit from a good road position, but they still had to deliver the drive and utterly deserve this brilliant result.

 

Ott and Martin could not quite catch the Toyota crew. There were moments of pace which gave them stage wins. They just could not get on terms with the pace at the very front. They did deserve the second place and along with the points from they scored they have now moved into the lead of the drivers and co-drivers championships.

 

Finally, Thierry and Martijn who took third overall showing flashes of pace on a surface which has not always been kind to the Belgians. It’s been a tricky year for them after their successes last year. Still, they are one of the best crews out there and it will be interesting to see how they get on in Finland at the next round.

 

Here’s the points tables.

2025 FIA World Rally Championship for Drivers’ Standings 
After round 8

1 O. Tänak 162 2 E. Evans 161 3 S. Ogier 141 4 K. Rovanperä 138 5 T. Neuville 114 6 A. Fourmaux 71 7 T. Katsuta 63 8 O. Solberg 52 9 S. Pajari 38 10 G. Munster 19

 

2025 FIA World Rally Championship for Manufacturers’ Standings
After round 8

1 Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team 399 2 Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team 347 3 M-Sport Ford World Rally Team 111 4 Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team 2 68

 

Round nine is next held in Rally Finland from the 31^st  July to 3^rd August.

Into the second full day then and with almost 126km’s over nine stages the crews had a big challenge ahead of them. Oliver and Elliott had a good lead of twelve seconds over Ott and Martin. Greg and Louis would open the road throughout the day.

 

First up was SS9 Raanitsa 1 – 21.45 km and Oliver as fastest from Thierry and Kalle. Ott remained in second overall but with only the fourth fastest time Oliver lead was now 16.6 seconds. The reason for the time loss? He’d lost control of the i20 and hit a bale at a chicane, then stalled the car. Once again the best of the M-Sport crews was Martins who was making the best of his road position over his teammates.

Into SS10 Kanepi 1 – 17.43 km and Oliver was again fastest whilst behind him there was a swap in positions as Ott’s second fastest time saw him move ahead of Thierry and back into second overall. Elfyn’s attempts to move up the leaderboard were not coming together, and he remained in seventh overall.

 

Next up was SS11 Raanitsa 2 – 21.45 km and Oliver’s amazing run at the front continued with another fastest time from Thierry and Ott. The Belgian moved back into second overall as Ott was a second slower than his teammate. This was not over though as only three tenths of a second separated them.

The final morning stage then, SS12 Kanepi 2 – 17.43 km and Ott was fastest from Oliver and Thierry. It was clear that the last three crews to complete the stages would be the pacesetters. Ott’s pace took him back into second place, but the gap was only four tenths of a second. Elfyn seemed to be finding a little pace, going fifth fastest and edged a little closer to Takamoto.

 

The afternoon stages started with SS13 Otepää 1 – 11.15 km and Thierry set the pace from Ott and Oliver. The Belgian moved back ahead of Ott but again the gap was tiny at just a tenth of a second. Meanwhile Oliver continued to lead and now had a 22.4 second lead over Thierry.

 

Back into SS14 Karaski 1 – 11.97 km and this time Ott was fastest from Oliver and Thierry. The Estonian moved back past Thierry into second place. Oliver’s lead remained at 22.4 seconds. Elfyn caught Takamoto a little again, but the gap remained over ten seconds.

 

Just three stages remained with SS15 Otepää 2 – 11.15 km first up. Oliver set the pace again from Thierry and Ott. The two of them set the same time as well, showing how close they are in terms of pace.

 

The last proper stage of the day, SS16 Karaski 2 – 11.97 km and Ott was again fastest from Oliver and Thierry. There were no changes in the top ten at all in fact and although Elfyn was quicker than Takamoto again, it was only by a tenth of a second and the gap was not coming down at all by any significant amount.

 

The final stage of the day was a short blast around SS17 Tartu vald 2 – 1.76 km and Thierry was fastest from Ott and Oliver. The Swede took a 21.1 second lead into the overnight halt.

 

Let’s take a look at the top positions and hear from the drivers.

Classification after Day Two

1 O. Solberg E. Edmondson Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 1:06:33.4 2 O. Tänak M. Järveoja Hyundai i20 N Rally1 +21.1 3 T. Neuville M. Wydaeghe Hyundai i20 N Rally1 +25.1 4 K. Rovanperä J. Halttunen Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +51.6 5 A. Fourmaux A. Coria Hyundai i20 N Rally1 +1:08.2 6 T. Katsuta A. Johnston Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +1:16.8 7 E. Evans S. Martin Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +1:30.4 8 S. Pajari M. Salminen Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +2:14.5 9 M. Sesks R. Francis Ford Puma Rally1 +2:48.5 10 J. McErlean E. Treacy Ford Puma Rally1 +4:13.6

Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT

Oliver Solberg

“It has been another absolutely amazing day today, with consistent speed and no mistakes. It wasn’t our plan to extend the gap – I expected that our rivals might fight back with their improved road positions – but that we were able to do so is fantastic. The car was working really well, and I was just trying to do my thing, still having fun while also learning some new things and trying to control the speed a bit this afternoon. Tomorrow I’ll just try to carry on with the same rhythm.”

“I’m taking the event one stage at a time, just getting in the car and driving – me and Elliott are just doing our jobs and ticking off the stages. Of course, we’re going fast and in some places we had some big jumps which maybe we weren’t expecting, but I’m still learning this car. And the more I learn about it, the more I am loving it! There’s some talk about some rain coming tomorrow – I’m hoping it stays dry, I never drove the GR YARIS Rally1 in the wet conditions!

Kalle Rovanperä

“It’s been a tricky day, much the same as yesterday. These stages always feel super nice to drive and I tried my best in every stage, but the pace was not there to do anything more. On the smaller, softer roads we can see that we have the pace on the split times, but we don’t have it on the wider more hard-packed roads. We’re working hard with the team to try and find that last bit. We will see how the conditions are tomorrow, as some rain can always mix things up, and try to catch some more points.”

Takamoto Katsuta

“Today the feeling was definitely better than yesterday. We found a good direction with the setup to make the car better. The stages are enjoyable, but you just need to be committed to make a good time and it’s not easy with the tricky, narrower sections. The gap has been tight between me and Adrien. Something didn’t feel quite right in the afternoon but I’m sure it will be fine for tomorrow and I’ll try my best to get as many points as I can for the team.”

Elfyn Evans

“It’s not been the day we wanted, and we haven’t been able to climb the leaderboard like we hoped we might. The times have been tight between everybody, and it’s been hard to make big differences. Some stages have felt quite OK behind the wheel, but it seems we’ve been missing some speed to challenge the top times. We’ve been experimenting with the setup to find a better feeling and I think we’ve got a good idea of what we want to go with tomorrow, and we’ll give it our best shot.

Sami Pajari

“Today was quite fine I believe. After what happened yesterday, we didn’t really have anything to fight for in terms of the result so it was just about trying to have a good feeling with the car and a good drive and take what we can from here to prepare for the next event in Finland. Considering our road position, which still seemed to be playing a big role, I think some of the stage times were not too bad and we’ll try to continue like this tomorrow.”

 

Hyundai Motorsport

Ott Tänak

“We made some mistakes this morning, we couldn’t get a good feeling or rhythm in the car so we were not able to go how we normally would. I’m struggling and it hasn’t improved over the day, so I can’t drive the way I should be able to. I know our fight with Thierry got quite uncomfortable for the team at times today, but we also made sure to bring it home. Oliver is in a rally of his own, so we need to push in our fight. There are many new sections tomorrow, the first stage is new for everyone, so it will be interesting.”

Thierry Neuville

“Overall, today was a good day. I had a nice feeling in the car and the stages were amazing. We’re happy to be in third at the moment; we’re not too far away from Ott, but there was nothing we could do to get closer to Oliver – we must be satisfied with where we are. The team has been very clear with us and wants to see both cars at the finish, so I didn’t risk anything this afternoon, particularly with Oliver not taking home any manufacturers’ points. Tomorrow we will see what happens, I’ll be pushing for those extra Super Sunday points to maximise our championship fight.”

Adrien Fourmaux

“The stages were really enjoyable today and we were able to have a lot of fun in the car, but we were also happy to have a really nice fight with Taka. There was a lot of sweeping today and every car can gain time from that. We didn’t maximise our opportunity from the cleaning, but catching Kalle would have been really difficult, so we have no regrets. There’s a brand-new stage tomorrow for everybody, which is good because today we were one of the only ones discovering new stages, so it’s an equal playing field for everyone tomorrow. We’re looking to push in the Super Sunday classification to do as well as possible overall.”

 

Sunday

The final day of this eighth round of the championship will see the crews tackle three stages totalling a little over 60km’s. Can Oliver and Elliott take a first overall win or will one of the Hyundai crews take the top spot?

The first full day of this rally saw the crews take on seven stages over 122km’s. Elfyn and Scott would open the road and sweep the road clear of gravel again. Ott and Martin who are in third in the championship standings would be second on the road as Seb and Vincent are not competing this weekend.

There had already been one stage run on Thursday evening and the top three was Thierry, Elfyn and Ott. An impressive run from Robert and Jakko in a Fabia Rally2 took them to fifth fastest.

Onto the first full day then and first up was SS2 Peipsiääre 1 – 24.35 km and Elfyn’s stage time would see him set the sixth best time.  It was a Toyota leading as well, but not the crew that would normally be expected to be at the front. Ott and Martin set the leading time which was then beaten by Oliver and Elliott! It was an incredible drive from them which saw them jump up six positions to the lead. Kalle was second fastest, whilst Thierry was third. The best placed of the M-Sport crews was Martins and Renaur who after setting the eighth best time climbed up eight positions to ninth overall.

Next up then was SS3 Mustvee 1 – 11.37 km and Ott was fastest from Oliver and Elfyn. The Estonian’s pace saw them move into second overall from fourth place. Oliver and Elliott continued to lead, the gap to Ott and Martin now 6.2 seconds. At M-Sport Josh moved ahead of Martins, the Irishman now in ninth place.

The crews then headed back to the first stage of the day for the second run through SS4 Peipsiääre 2 – 24.35 km and Oliver was again fastest from Kalle and Ott. Oliver remained in the lead the gap between him and Ott now 9.4 seconds, whilst Kalle was third.

The second run of SS5 Mustvee 2 – 11.37 km and Ott was fastest from Oliver by just nine tenths of a second and Kalle was third. The gap between the top two was now 8.5 seconds. Josh remained the top placed M-Sport driver, holding ninth just 4.8 seconds behind Sami and 1.8 seconds ahead of Martins.

After the first break the first of three stages, SS6 Kambja 1 – 23.74 km and completely new stages as well would see Adrien set the fastest time from Oliver and Thierry. The Frenchman passed Elfyn for sixth overall who was only eleventh fastest in the stage. It was a surprising result for the championship leader who’d only lost 20 seconds in the morning stages yet lost 15 in one stage. Opening the road was killing the ability to set good times. Thierry also was on the move passing Kalle for third overall. Oliver’s lead over Ott was now 11.9 seconds.

The second run of SS7 Kambja 2 – 23.74 km saw Oliver set the fastest time from Adrien and Thierry. Adrien was now up into fifth place as he passed Takamoto. Meanwhile Martins was now the fastest of the M-Sport crews, holding ninth overall.

Onto the final stage of the day, SS8 Elva Linn – 1.72 km and Thierry was fastest from Takamoto and Ott. Rally leader, Oliver was eleventh, but still had a 12.4 second lead over Ott. It had been an amazing day for the Swede and his British co-driver Elliott.

Let’s take a look at the top ten and hear from the driver’s.

 

Classification after Day One

1	O. Solberg	E. Edmondson	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	1:06:33.4
2	O. Tänak	M. Järveoja	Hyundai i20 N Rally1	+12.4
3	T. Neuville	M. Wydaeghe	Hyundai i20 N Rally1	+14.2
4	K. Rovanperä	J. Halttunen	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	+20.1
5	A. Fourmaux	A. Coria	Hyundai i20 N Rally1	+29.8
6	T. Katsuta	A. Johnston	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	+30.0
7	E. Evans	S. Martin	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	+41.4
8	S. Pajari	M. Salminen	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	+01:05.1
9	M. Sesks	R. Francis	Ford Puma Rally1	+01:11.4
10	J. McErlean	E. Treacy	Ford Puma Rally1	+01:30.0

 

 

Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT

Oliver Solberg

“Today has been the best day of my life. It was a dream come true just to be driving this car, but to be leading the rally and winning a few stages, it’s been a lot of fun. The car has been amazing to drive. We worked in our test last week to get a comfortable feeling and we’ve been able to take that into the rally. I’m learning with every stage, but I’ve been able to have a clean rhythm. The guys behind me will get a better road position tomorrow and I’m not sure I’m ready to push harder with my limited experience, but I will just try to do the same as today and see what it brings.”

“The plan for the rest of the event hasn’t changed, we are here to take the experience – I’m not here to win the rally. I’ve driven sensibly today; we didn’t take any huge risks. We pushed where it was good to go a bit harder and then we’ve slowed where it’s got a bit more complicated or where we’ve seen some big rocks coming. The roads have been nice today, but even when we’re coming with the ruts, the car is so nice and so balanced, it’s such a pleasure to be driving it. I have been smiling all day!

Kalle Rovanperä

“The morning loop was quite good for us. The conditions were tricky after the rain earlier in the week with some changeable grip levels, but it was a clean start for us. We made some changes for the afternoon to try to optimise the grip of the car. Still, I felt we were leaving some time on the stages and not being able to drive as sharp and precise as usual. At least we tried some things and know a bit more about the direction to go in for tomorrow. We still pushed through the whole day and tomorrow we will do the same.”

Takamoto Katsuta

“Things started quite difficult this morning. I was struggling a lot, but I tried changing a few things on the car setup during the morning and the feeling was getting better and better. Then, unfortunately, the afternoon was still a bit of a struggle. We will keep working together with the engineers and my teammates to continue improving the car, and I will try to improve my driving and I will give it everything to be better tomorrow.”

Elfyn Evans

“It’s been a demanding day and a bit more difficult than we were hoping it would be. Already this morning I struggled with the grip: we had seen much damper conditions in recce, but the sun had been out since and dried out the roads and made conditions looser for us running first on the road. Then the first stage after service was particularly difficult; I think you could see it quite clearly from the times. We’ve lost quite a lot of time to the leaders, so we’ll be looking for some more speed with a better position tomorrow.”

Sami Pajari

“It was an unfortunate start this morning for us with the problem that we had from the first stage today. It was quite a long morning loop before we could get to service, but thankfully the team was able to fix the issue and we could enjoy the afternoon’s stages. It was a pity that we lost the time in the overall standings, but I’m trying not to focus too much on that and just focus on my driving, and the pace is starting to be on the level where we should be, somewhere close to the front. Tomorrow is another day with some even faster sections and I’m looking forward to it.”

 

Hyundai Motorsport

Ott Tänak

“It was more enjoyable than I was expecting this afternoon, although I did struggle more in the second loop than I did in the first. The cleaning effect was more pronounced with a lot of loose gravel and super low grip, but actually the balance in the car was better. Tomorrow we will really see where we are with our pace; today we were opening the road and driving a different rally, but I think it will change on Saturday. Oliver is our target, but Thierry is also very close after going very well today.”

Thierry Neuville

“Today was a good day; tricky conditions out there, but I was trying to make the best of it, with a few surprises here and there this morning. I really enjoyed the afternoon loop. I think there are still a few little tricks we can do in the car to get more speed, but overall, I think we can be satisfied. I am looking for a bit more consistency in terms of the chassis balance, as sometimes I’m experiencing a lot of understeer in the corner entry. We made some good improvements in service, but there might be more we can do to make the car perfect for tomorrow.”

Adrien Fourmaux

“I really had confidence to push in the car this afternoon after we made some set-up changes in services, playing with the ride height of the car and the stiffness of the bars. It felt much better for me and then the times were coming. Our target was to overtake Evans and then Katsuta, which we managed in a great afternoon after a difficult morning. Kalle is nine seconds ahead of us, although it will be tricky to catch him, but my main goal is to keep Katsuta and Evans behind as it is important for the championship.”

 

Saturday

The second full day will see the crews tackle almost 126km’s over nine stages. What will we see from Oliver and Elliott? Can and will the two Hyundai crews pass him? What will Elfyn and Scott be able to do with a better road position?

All these and more questions will be answered tomorrow!

Time then for round eight of this year’s championship and we move away from the rough gravel of the recent rounds to the faster stages of Estonia. Ott and Martin come to this round in third, twelve points behind Elfyn and Scott in the championship standings after their measured drive last time out, to victory in Greece.

Of course, Kalle and Jonne will likely be the other crew who will be near the front of the timesheets. They took their first win at this rally a few years ago and have therefore great memories of this event. Third on the road will help their quest for another victory.

Finally, a word on Oliver and Elliot who will step into a top spec Yaris for this event. For this young crew this will be a case of learning this car. They’ve already had a test day, but that’s nothing like actually competing at a full event. It will be interesting to see how they get on.

Let’s take a look at the stages then and hear from the drivers.

Weekend at a Glance

• Competition gets underway on Thursday evening with the weekend’s first loop of Tartu vald (SS1/17, 1.76km)
• Seven stages are set to be run on Friday: two loops of Peipsiääre (SS2/4, 24.35km), Mustvee (SS3/5, 11.37km) and Kambja (SS6/7, 23.74km) are joined by one run of Elva linn (SS8, 1.72km)
• Saturday presents the longest day of the weekend, featuring four tests run twice, followed by the final run of Tartu vald, covering 125.76km
• Three stages finalise the weekend’s competitive action on Sunday: a solo Hellenurme (SS18, 11.79km) and two loops of Kääriku (SS19/20, 24.20km)

Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT

Elfyn Evans

“We’re looking forward to a very different character of rally for the next two events, with some very fast roads. Although Estonia wasn’t on the calendar last year, it’s an event we have pretty good knowledge of and a nice one to be going back to with the high-speed nature of the stages. It’s important to have a good feeling in the car and our test last week was good for working through some ideas, but we also know the conditions we’ll face on the rally can depend a lot on the weather; hopefully there can be a chance of some rain to help us out opening the road on Friday.”

Kalle Rovanperä

“It’s cool to be going back to Rally Estonia this year. It’s where I took my first win in the WRC and we’ve had some good success since then also, so I have good memories of this event. I really enjoy driving on the fast and flowing roads and they suit my style well, so I’m excited. The pace on gravel so far this year hasn’t quite been where I’ve wanted it to be, so we had an important test in Estonia last week to try and get fully up to speed and find the best setup for these faster rallies. The feeling was pretty good and I’m confident that we can do a good rally.”

Takamoto Katsuta

“The fast rallies coming up in Estonia and Finland are some of my favourites on the calendar and I’m looking forward to them. It can be challenging to adjust again to the much faster roads, and we also have to get used to driving with the new tyres on high-speed gravel for the first time, but the car felt good in our test, and I feel I’m ready to push. The Estonian stages can be tricky in places especially in the forests, where they are still very fast but also narrow, and this could make Friday the most challenging day. Still, I’m confident we can do a good job and will try to prepare as well as I can.”

Sami Pajari

“These next two rallies are very different to the ones we’ve just had, and maybe the most enjoyable ones on the calendar for me: the stages are high-speed and also quite flowing and in pretty good condition, so it can be more about driving fast than trying to avoid issues. In Estonia the surface is softer than Finland and the roads can get more rutted, so it’s not totally straightforward, but it’s been a nice rally for me in the support categories. Now we’re halfway through the season, it’s natural to try to increase the pace and these next rallies can be good for this, without planning to do anything crazy.”

Oliver Solberg

“It’s a fantastic opportunity and a dream come true for me to be able to do Rally Estonia in the GR YARIS Rally1. To test the car in Finland this week was already an incredible feeling. It’s been a great season so far and I feel ready for this and to learn and gain experience at the top level. Estonia’s one of my favourite rallies; it’s quite technical but also super-fast, so it won’t be easy. The goal is to build up step-by-step during the rally and get more and more comfortable in the car, finish the rally to gain as much experience as possible, and have loads of fun.”

 

Hyundai Motorsport

Ott Tänak

“We’ve just finished three rough rallies where we showed some strong performance. Now, we move on to a different challenge – Rally Estonia is the first of two really fast and smooth gravel rounds, which I personally enjoy because they are the type of roads I learnt to compete on. These events are purely performance based, meaning they ask a lot from the car – the gaps will be small, and speeds will be high. The setup needs to be very precise and balanced, and the aerodynamic package also plays a big role. We’ve had a busy last week preparing for the rally as we need to do our best in Estonia. This is a crucial point in the championship fight, we can’t let it slip away.”

Thierry Neuville

“It’s been a challenging start to the season, despite trying our hardest to avoid issues, but we had a good feeling in the car in Greece and need to capitalise on that. Rally Estonia is an event with a great atmosphere, and I have finished on the podium there a few times. We need to have total trust and confidence in the car because of the fast roads and big jumps, so suspension and grip are key parts of our setup. The weather can play a part in the speeds, but it’s been mostly dry so it’s not our biggest concern. It’s important we get a strong result here; we have everything in our hands and continue to work hard, we just need a bit more luck.”

Adrien Fourmaux

“To get a podium in our lead up to this year’s fast rallies is important for the team and great for my confidence, it’s given us the boost we need for Rally Estonia. With such high speeds at this round, we need a car with good balance and grip. Reactivity is super important, but there needs to be a balance between that and the grip on the surface. I’ve had a lot of experience there in the past in but it’s very unpredictable; the ground is softer than Finland, so if it rains it can get very rutted very quickly. Precision is essential to not get caught out here. We need to bring back some good points for the team, and our aim for the end of the weekend is to finish on the podium once again.”

 

M-Sport Ford WRT

Grégoire Munster

“Rally Estonia has got to be one of the best rallies on the calendar when it comes to atmosphere and organisation. It’s always a pleasure to come back and drive these roads in front of so many passionate rally fans. Estonia also holds some nice memories for me as I won the Junior WRC event here two years ago. The stages are incredibly fast – a bit like Finland but not as compact – and we’re really looking forward to getting out there and tackling this year’s event.”

Josh McErlean

“Rally Estonia is a real benchmark for pace and commitment – fast roads, big jumps and no room for hesitation. It’s an incredible feeling driving these roads and one I’ve been looking forward to ever since stepping into the Puma Rally1. Every kilometre is a chance to grow, and I’m keen to keep pushing, learning and showing what we can do.”

Mārtiņš Sesks

“Rally Estonia will feel like a home event for us this year. For sure there will be lots of Latvian fans out spectating and lots of Latvian flags in the crowds which is always great to see. I’m really looking forward to having those home-crowed emotions again – it really is one of the most valuable things you can have. Of course, I’m also looking forward to the rally itself and to being back on fast gravel. Let’s see how it goes and hopefully we can find a good feeling in the car and have a really great weekend. We’re looking forward to it.”

Romet Jürgenson

“I feel like we have good momentum right now. Already in Sardinia we improved our speed quite a lot, and now coming into our home event in Estonia our knowledge and experience of the roads is a lot greater. Of course, this will be our first time competing here with the Rally2 car, but I still feel as though we can do a good job. We just need to focus on getting the set-up in a good window to get the maximum performance possible. For sure this is going to be a pure performance rally, and we can’t wait to get started.”

Summary

Well, we are set for a very fast rally indeed. With 308km’s over 20 stages it will be a big challenge for the crews. Who do you think will take victory?

The final day then and Ott brought a forty-three second lead over Seb to the final stages of which there was a total of 99km’s over the four remaining tests. Sami, Takamoto, Kalle and Martins all returned to the action with Sami and Marko opening the road. Greg and Louis would sadly not return to the action which was a huge shame and they’d driven a brilliant first two days to hold sixth overall.

First up was SS14 Smokovo 1 – 26.16 km a properly long stage for the final day and Ott picked up where he left off going 1.8 seconds faster than Seb and Thierry. Elfyn was just seven tenths behind with the fourth best time. Takamoto had a spin in the stage on a left hander which was going uphill. This stage featured two water splashes at around 11km’s and 21km’s.

Into the first run of what would be the power stage later, SS15 Tarzan 1 – 23.37 km and Ott again was fastest from Seb and this time Elfyn. Adrien who was eyeing up his and Alex’s first podium since Monte Carlo was taking things carefully setting the sixth best time.

After a service break came SS16 Smokovo 2 – 26.16 km and Seb was fastest from Ott and Adrien. The drama continued for Thierry whose car engine stopped in the stage. After a reset, the car did restart, and he finished the stage. The top positions remained unchanged and just one stage remained between Ott and Martin taking their first win of the year.

We came then to the final stage, SS17 Tarzan 2[Power Stage] – 23.37 km and Thierry set the early pace, before Kalle and Seb came through and set the fastest time. What of Ott though who was last to complete the stage. Well, the early splits showed that he and Martin was not far off the pace of Seb, but then the later splits showed they were losing time. They completed the stage and were sixteen seconds down on the best time with the fifth best time. They were suffering with a gearbox problem which caused the time loss. They were so concerned with the problem that they did not celebrate the win in the usual way and drove into the area beyond the time zone.

Nevertheless, they’d taken victory at last. It is a well-deserved victory for the crew, and unlikely to be the last this season.

Let’s take a look at the top positions and hear from the drivers.

Final Overall Classification – Acropolis Rally 

1	O. Tänak	M. Järveoja	Hyundai i20 N Rally1	4:12:20.1
2	S. Ogier	V. Landais	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	+32.8
3	A. Fourmaux	A. Coria	Hyundai i20 N Rally1	+3:09.8
4	E. Evans	S. Martin	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	+3:31.1
5	T. Neuville	M. Wydaeghe	Hyundai i20 N Rally1	+8:59.5
6	O. Solberg	E. Edmondson	Toyota GR Yaris	+10:34.7
7	G. Greensmith	J. Andersson	Škoda Fabia RS	+11:28.5
8	Y. Rossel	A. Dunand	Citroën C3	+11:43.7
9	K. Kajetanowicz	M. Szczepaniak	Toyota GR Yaris	+12:56.7
10	A. Cachón	B. Rozada	Toyota GR Yaris	+14:19.9

 

Hyundai Motorsport

Ott Tänak

“It was a great weekend, but it was also incredibly demanding. The temperatures and the length of the rally were massive obstacles, but we were very happy to put a winning package together, keep the tyres alive and demonstrate our performance. Since Saturday morning we were able to control the pace, I felt good in the car and it was working really well in these conditions. We avoided punctures all weekend by pushing in the sections with minimal risk and holding back in the rougher places, and that was the key. Overall, we are very happy to claim our first win at Acropolis in these conditions.”

Adrien Fourmaux

“This was one of the toughest Acropolis Rallies I’ve ever competed in. Temperatures were really high, and the ground was super abrasive with a lot of loose rocks. We saw a lot of punctures during the rally, but we managed to stay away with minimal tyre damage. I’m pleased to finish on the podium, we were fighting for second but after the issue we had yesterday that fight was over. Securing third was really important to us and we managed to do it, so I’m pleased with the weekend overall.”

Thierry Neuville

“I’m leaving Greece with a solid points haul, but it’s not the weekend I wanted. I had three punctures, and from then on we faced other issues with the car that didn’t help our final efforts today. All in all, we had lots of trouble, but we were able to fix the car for the Power Stage and finish that third fastest. I want to target a podium finish and some big points in Estonia; it’s not my favourite surface, but we’ve performed well there in the past, so let’s see.”

 

Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT

Sébastien Ogier

“It has been another really strong weekend for us. There was not much we could do about Ott’s pace, also considering the difference in start position, so well done to him on a well-deserved win. Taking 27 points is the maximum I think we could get out of this weekend, so we can be very happy. We have reached the mid-point of the season, and we are still strongly ahead in the manufacturers’ championship. Thanks to the team for pushing very hard all the time and let’s keep going like this in the second half of the season.”

Elfyn Evans

“It’s been a tough weekend with very difficult conditions, but we’ve managed to avoid trouble and finish fourth again – and we also got some Sunday points to top up the tally and soften the blow compared to our rivals. We definitely knew coming into these last three rough gravel rallies opening the road that it would be possible to lose our lead of the championship, so on that side I’m pleased. Now we move onto a different type of rally where we hope to show some more pace and performance.”

Kalle Rovanperä

“It was a tricky day restarting today. With our starting place we didn’t have much to play for but we had quite OK pace on the Power Stage and at least we could take four points from there, which was probably the maximum we could do. It hasn’t been the best weekend for me, not being on the pace and level where I should be. I know that there is room to improve, and we will work to come back stronger for Estonia.”

Takamoto Katsuta

“It was a pity that the Power Stage didn’t work out for us. We chose to focus on it and were pushing a lot, but not in a crazy way: looking at the split times we were fastest overall until we had to stop and change the tyre. It was a frustrating weekend, but we know that this rally can be very tough, and these things can happen; the important thing is to keep my head up and prepare for the next events in Estonia and Finland.”

Sami Pajari

“I had a nice feeling driving again today; thanks to the team for getting us back on the road. It was something really strange and unfamiliar for me to be first on the road and sweeping it clean, but it was also good experience. It’s safe to say it’s not been the weekend we were hoping for but the beginning on Friday was quite strong, so it is good to see the pace is getting there and I’m looking forward to the next events.”

 

M-Sport Ford WRT

Josh McErlean

“I think it’s been a super demanding weekend for everyone, the team, the car, the crew. It’s nice to know you can get through these kinds of events – we hit a massive hurdle yesterday morning when we clipped the rock, but we managed to fix the car and keep it going.

“Today has been pretty ok, we’ve learnt a lot from a driving perspective and hopefully we can have a good test in Finland and prepare properly for the next two rallies.”

Mārtiņš Sesks

“Of course, I think we can find some positives from certain stages, our Power Stage performance wasn’t bad and some of the other stages too. On our first time here we’ve had to be quick learners, and I would say at some points we were quite good. On the points where we weren’t so good, it’s just about having knowledge for future years and at least now we know more about how to prepare for this rally. It needs more detailed preparation compared to other rallies and the experience we’ve gained this week will help that in the future.”

Grégoire Munster

“A disappointing end to our experience in Greece, but generally we had some positives to take away. Especially on Friday when there were good conditions, we pushed and managed to get a third-fastest time which shows the potential of the car.

“In other places we managed to be cautious, we had a long-term strategy and finished Friday in fifth and then sixth on Saturday evening, so there were a lot of positives from the weekend. It wasn’t meant to be, but we will come back stronger.”

 

Oliver Solberg

“It’s such a nice feeling,” smiled Oliver, shortly after celebrating with his fiancé, Chloe Chambers.

“This has been the absolutely perfect weekend. You hear so much about this event and you’re kind of a little bit scared for some of the stories – this is the Acropolis Rally, where anything can happen!

“Me and Elliott made a plan and we stuck with it, we pushed where it was safe and sensible, and we backed off to look after the tyres and the car where it was really bad. I’m really proud for this win, the way we managed the race and the tyres, and everything was really nice – it was a strategic win.

“I want to say a big thanks to the team. I know I say this every time, but it’s so true: Toyota and Printsport made the perfect car for the perfect rally and the same with Elliott. It’s fair to say this has been a hot one, with the temperature in the car so high at times, but he’s been so, so good with the notes and everything.

“I don’t know what else to say! I came here without so much experience, I didn’t feel I’d ever done the Acropolis properly and I wanted to put that right. We’ve done that. There wasn’t a single thing, it was a flawless rally.

“The icing on the cake has to be the championship lead again. Everything is feeling super-nice right now. Everything is working just like we want. I’m very happy!”

 

Summary

Well, what a win for the 2019 world champions. It’s really brought them back into the fight for the championship now just twelve points from the leaders. Next up is their home event as well.

 

It was a consistent drive from Seb and Vincent to the podium, giving Toyota some excellent points for the championship. They continue to hold second in the driver championship as well.

 

Finally, Adrien and Alex had a great drive and despite a slight error which damaged the suspension, they did well to score a second podium of the year.

2025 FIA World Rally Championship for Drivers’ Standings 
After round 7

1	E. Evans	150
2	S. Ogier	141
3	O. Tänak	138
4	K. Rovanperä	117
5	T. Neuville	96
6	T. Katsuta	63
7	A. Fourmaux	61
8	S. Pajari	32
9	O. Solberg	19
10	G. Munster	18

 

2025 FIA World Rally Championship for Manufacturers’ Standings
After round 7

1	Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team	358
2	Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team	293
3	M-Sport Ford World Rally Team	97
4	Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team 2	57

 

The second day then of this iconic rally and the crews had 123km’s over six stages to get through. Martins and Renaur returned to the action after their retirement with the technical problem yesterday. The Latvian crew in their Puma would open the road. Sami did not return to the action as the Yaris remained in the service park. This was because the car still had the problem which caused the retirement yesterday.

First up was SS8 Pavliani 1 – 24.58 km and Ott was fastest from Seb and Adrien as the top three overall continued to set the best times with their advantageous road position. There was some drama for Josh who damaged the suspension on the right rear of his Puma. Also in the wars was Thierry who had another puncture on the right rear.

Into SS9 Karoutes 1 – 19.48 km and Ott was fastest again from Adrien and Seb. Takamoto was finding some pace, going fourth fastest. Thierry came back well after his problem to set the sixth best time and moving ahead of Kalle and into seventh overall.

The final morning stage and the halfway point of the day, SS10 Inohori 1 – 17.66 km saw Seb take a stage win by just one tenth of a second from Ott and Thierry third fastest. Adrien broke his suspension on the rear after sliding into a rock on the edge of the road. The Frenchman dropped one position to third place. Gaining a position was Takamoto who passed Greg for fifth overall. The Puma driver was suffering with a technical problem as his handbrake had failed and this is a key part of the car, helping the driver turn the car on tight corners such as hairpins.

After the service break, SS11 Pavliani 2 – 24.58 km was next and Ott was back to the top, two and a half seconds faster than Seb and Thierry who really was on the kind of pace that would be expected from him. The pace took him up two positions to fifth place. There were two retirements in this stage though as first Kalle and then Takamoto went off the road. The Finn would return to the stage after some help from some spectators, but Takamoto’s car was completely beached. Kalle could not finish the stage though and stopped at the side of the road.

Next up was SS12 Karoutes 2 – 19.48 km and Ott again was fastest from Thierry and Seb. Ott’s lead was now almost forty-three seconds over Seb, with Adrien a further minute and fifteen seconds behind his fellow countryman. The Puma crews of Greg and Josh continued to have issues with their handbrakes but were doing what they could to complete the stages and the day. Greg remained in sixth overall.

Onto the final stage then, SS13 Inohori 2 – 17.66 km and once again Ott was fastest from Seb and Thierry. Elfyn was fourth fastest and maintained his fourth place overall, remaining a minute and thirteen seconds ahead of Thierry.

Let’s take a look at the top positions and hear from the drivers.

Classification after Day Two

1 O. Tänak M. Järveoja Hyundai i20 N Rally1 2:56:31.7 2 S. Ogier V. Landais Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +43.6 3 A. Fourmaux A. Coria Hyundai i20 N Rally1 +2:08.0 4 E. Evans S. Martin Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +3:04.4 5 T. Neuville M. Wydaeghe Hyundai i20 N Rally1 +4:17.7 6 G. Munster L. Louka Ford Puma Rally1 +5:55.0 7 O. Solberg E. Edmondson Toyota GR Yaris +6:56.7 8 G. Greensmith J. Andersson Škoda Fabia RS +8:34.5 9 K. Kajetanowicz M. Szczepaniak Toyota GR Yaris +8:44.5 10 Y. Rossel A. Dunand Citroën C3 +8:59.6

Hyundai Motorsport

Ott Tänak

“We’ve generally had a very good day. Even in the afternoon, it’s true that some bedrock was threatening us sometimes, but generally it was smoother and more consistent – a bit better than expected. We had a good rhythm, and we maintained all day. While we are still in the lead, it’s important to remember that we haven’t scored any points yet and we still have some rough stages to go, including one that is new and very long, so this is always very demanding. Let’s see what we can do tomorrow to bring this home.”

Adrien Fourmaux

“This afternoon was just about surviving and avoiding any risk of puncture to maintain a good position for tomorrow. It was a challenge to manage the tyre wear, but I’m happy we managed it and saved a soft tyre for tomorrow. We had an issue on SS10, so we lost some time and one position, but after we fixed it we had no further time loss. We want to get some good points tomorrow but at the same time we don’t want to risk everything and throw away our hard work over two long days on Super Sunday.”

Thierry Neuville

“We were hoping for some rain this afternoon, hence why we went for the soft compound – in case there was any possibility for us to go for a good move and gain any more positions. We pushed a bit more today because we wanted to keep the pressure on Evans, and in case of any issues with him we wanted to be as close as possible. We have to look forward to see what’s possible tomorrow; it’s super rough in Tarzan, so both the first and second pass will be a big challenge for the cars and the tyres. We want to stay trouble free and have a good run.”

 

Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT

Sébastien Ogier

“It was a solid day for us, and we have to be happy to get through another challenging day in Greece. At least it was not as hot as yesterday, so it was a bit more enjoyable. The roughness was still there in places and managing the tyre wear was a big focus on the second pass this afternoon. Ott was flying today so there was not much we could do, and we realised this morning that road position was still playing a role. Tomorrow everything is still to play for; there are many kilometres to go, and very rough conditions expected on the second pass, but with Sunday points on offer, nobody can relax!”

Elfyn Evans

“The feeling in the car was better today with our position further back in the road order certainly helping us. We tried to keep a decent speed and rhythm while staying out of trouble and we managed to achieve that. We definitely have to give it a go tomorrow but also have to wait and see how the feeling is. It will be a rough and long day tomorrow, not a typical short Sunday, but those Sunday points are important, so we will have to try.”

Takamoto Katsuta

“Today started much better than yesterday. We changed a few things on the car overnight and felt more comfortable and confident. It felt even better in the afternoon after some changes during service and the split times were looking good in SS11. It wasn’t a crazy push, and everything felt under control, but under braking for one hairpin it was quite bumpy and rough and I couldn’t get the car stopped. Unfortunately, there was a gravel bank on the outside and we got stuck on top and could not get out. It was quite unlucky, but it was my mistake, and I’m sorry to the team.”

Kalle Rovanperä

“It’s not been an easy day. Already in the morning I was struggling quite a bit. Then in the first stage of the afternoon we went off in quite a rough braking, going a bit wide and getting stuck. After we got back on the road we saw that we had some damage on the car; I’m not sure if that’s why I couldn’t get the car slowed down, but it meant we couldn’t finish the stage. Tomorrow we just need to try and have a good day and get as many points as we can.”

 

Oliver Solberg

“Today has been about managing the rally a little bit,” said Oliver. “We know these stages are going to be very hard for the tyres, so we’re trying to make sure we look after them and the car as well. It’s so rough, especially on the second pass, and we just have to be very careful.

“We’ve had quite a lot of dust at times, this is not so nice. It’s hard to commit completely in these conditions.

“Now, it’s not so much about trying to be the fastest everywhere – sure it’s nice when you do this, but it’s about being as smart and as safe as possible. The gap we have at the front is nice, but this is Greece and we have seen for the last two days that anything can happen and I’m not sure there’s anything you could really call a safe margin on the Acropolis!

“For me and Elliott [Edmondson, co-driver] tomorrow is about bringing the car home. Staying in the middle of the road and staying out of trouble.”

 

Sunday

The final day beckons then and it’s a proper day as well with 99km’s over four stages. This event can bite, and will we see a final bit of drama for the crews?

Let’s wait and see.