Sébastien Ogier claimed an unlikely Secto Rally Finland victory after his Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT team-mate Kalle Rovanperä crashed out on the occasion’s penultimate stage whereas in entrance.
Rovanperä had led spherical 9 of the 2024 FIA World Rally Championship for nearly each kilometre of this four-day gravel fixture and seemed set to finish Finland’s seven-year watch for a house winner with a forty five.8s benefit going into the rally’s penultimate stage. Nonetheless, all of it went unsuitable for the 23-year-old when he clipped a rogue rock, pushing his GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrid off the road and right into a rally-ending roll. Rovanperä and co-driver Jonne Halttunen have been unhurt.
The identical stage had earlier served up additional drama when Rovanperä’s team-mate, Elfyn Evans, additionally left the highway whereas chasing down Tremendous Sunday factors to make up for a damaged driveshaft on Friday.
On his first Finnish outing since 2021, Ogier was available to select up the items alongside co-driver Vincent Landais and took his 61st WRC victory by 40.1s from Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid driver Thierry Neuville. Adrien Fourmaux, piloting a Ford Puma Rally1 for the M-Sport Ford squad, stuffed the ultimate podium spot 34.0s additional again.
“It’s onerous to smile proper now,” Ogier mentioned on the end. “A win in Finland is all the time good, however this isn’t the way in which we prefer to have it. Very sorry for Kalle and Jonne, they have been unfortunate with the stone and it’s a disgrace for them. We have been unfortunate in Sardinia and misplaced within the final stage, however we’re fortunate right here. That’s motorsport.”
Right this moment’s occasions have shaken up the Driver’s championship standings with Ogier, regardless of lacking three rallies earlier this 12 months, now as much as second. After Friday retiree Ott Tänak and Evans each scored zero, the pair dropped to 3rd and fourth respectively.
However it was Neuville (above) who was the most important winner by way of the title race. Having arrived in Finland with an eight-point lead, the Belgian’s buffer now stands at 27 factors whereas his Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Staff prolonged its lead over Toyota within the Producers’ championship to twenty.
“It was an actual rollercoaster of feelings this weekend,” Neuville mentioned. “We had a intelligent strategy this weekend understanding it was onerous to battle with the Toyotas. After our crew’s points (Tänak and Esapekka Lappi each crashing on Friday), we knew we needed to deliver the factors dwelling.”
Fourmaux’s third-place outcome marked his fourth podium of the season. The Frenchman (above) trailed Neuville by 34.0s on the ultimate management with Sami Pajari’s Toyota 40.0s behind.
Pajari, together with co-driver Enni Mälkönen, delivered a formidable drive on his top-flight debut. After a rocky begin to the rally, which included two spins leading to rear wing harm on Friday, the Finnish pair claimed their first WRC stage win at Ruuhimäki on Saturday.
Rally2 equipment stuffed the rest of the highest 10. Oliver Solberg gained the FIA WRC2 class and positioned fifth general forward of Jari-Matti Latvala, prime FIA WRC2 Challenger Lauri Joona, Mikko Heikkilä, Nikolay Gryazin and Georg Linnamäe. Mexico’s Ricardo Triviño claimed victory within the FIA WRC Masters’ Cup.
Finn Jesse Kallio gained FIA WRC3 with FIA Rally Star Taylor Gill (beneath) claiming his maiden FIA Junior WRC victory after battling again from outdoors the highest 10. The Australian is now one level behind team-mate Romer Jürgenson with simply subsequent month’s EKO Acropolis Rally Greece remaining.
Based mostly in Lamia, the gravel occasion takes place from September 5-8.
