Finland (WRC) - NEW DATE 1-3 Oct 21

Toyota Yaris WRC returns to home roads for an autumn Rally Finland

Posted: September 30, 2021 12:36 PM

The TOYOTA GAZOO Racing World Rally Team will compete on home roads for the first time in more than two years when the spectacular Rally Finland returns with a new autumn look on October 1-3.

Developed at the team’s headquarters close to the event’s service park in Jyväskylä, the Toyota Yaris WRC has an unbeaten record on Rally Finland after victories in 2017, 2018 and 2019. The rally was called off in 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic, and this year moves back from its normal summer date to ensure that fans can watch the action in the stages.

All of the team’s drivers will be contesting Rally Finland in the Yaris WRC for the first time. Sébastien Ogier, who won the event in 2013, has a 44-point lead in the drivers’ standings with team-mate Elfyn Evans his closest rival in second place. Just seven points further back in fourth and on a high after his recent wins in Estonia and Greece is Kalle Rovanperä, starting his home rally in the top category for the first time.

Also looking forward to an event familiar to him is TGR Rally Challenge Program driver Takamoto Katsuta, who will be joined in the co-driver’s seat for this rally by Aaron Johnston. A fifth privately-entered Yaris WRC will be driven by Esapekka Lappi, who won the event for the team back in 2017.

The smooth gravel stages in the forests of central Finland are known for being the fastest on the WRC calendar, and also for the many large jumps and numerous crests. The autumn date is set to bring a different complexion with cooler temperatures and an increased likelihood of damp conditions.

The event takes on a more compact form for this year too, with shakedown taking place on Friday morning before the rally starts at lunchtime with the mixed-surface Harju stage in Jyväskylä itself. Five further stages follow over the rest of the day, with Oittila to take place after sunset. Saturday features a loop of four stages on famous roads around Jämsä, to be repeated after mid-day service with another run over Harju to round out the day. Sunday follows a similar format to previous years with two passes over the Laukaa and Ruuhima?ki stages to the east of Jyväskylä.

Quotes:
Jari-Matti Latvala (Team Principal)
“It’s certainly going to be a different feeling for me going to Rally Finland this year, leading the team into its home event. It’s a rally with a fantastic atmosphere and I’m looking forward to it a lot. The rally has never been held in October before. We can expect the grip from the stages to be lower than usual, and if the weather is bad it could be very slippery. Another interesting element will be stages being driven in darkness, which hasn’t happened on Rally Finland since the 1990s. Our car has been developed on Finnish roads and we know that we should be strong there again, but we can take nothing for granted at such a crucial time in the championship. For Kalle it will be his home event and he will have an extra boost after his recent victories, but all our drivers could be capable of fighting for the top positions.”

Sébastien Ogier / Julien Ingrassia
Sébastien Ogier (Driver car 1)
“Rally Finland is another rally that I love to drive. At this time of year it could be a different challenge and a bit more difficult than what we are used to. We will discover more in our test just before the rally. For sure we can expect some colder conditions, and I have to say I am hoping for some dampness as well so we have less of a disadvantage opening the road. The Yaris WRC was born on Finnish roads so it should perform well there but I am expecting tough competition as well, including from my team-mates. Nothing is decided in the championship yet so let’s see what approach we will take on this rally, but I’m looking forward to driving those roads in this car.”

Elfyn Evans / Scott Martin
Elfyn Evans (Driver car 33)
“Finland is one of my favourite rallies on the calendar and I always enjoy the feeling of driving there. For me it’s actually been over three years since I last competed there, having missed the event in 2019, so I’m really looking forward to being back on those stages. At this time of year there will be a few new challenges which will be interesting, with the potential for different weather conditions and the fact we’ll be doing some stages in the dark. Our test before the rally will be quite important, as much for getting back up to speed on those roads as for deciding on car setup. For myself the drivers’ championship looks more difficult now but our approach won’t change, and I’ll go to Finland trying to do my best like always.”

Kalle Rovanperä / Jonne Halttunen
Kalle Rovanperä (Driver car 69)
“Driving Rally Finland in a World Rally Car is going to be one of the coolest things for me in my career so far. A home rally is always different and Rally Finland is something special: It’s normally a really nice event and you can really feel the atmosphere there. Now that it’s later in the year, the conditions could be really difficult if it’s wet and muddy. That could change things a bit but I’m really looking forward to it, and it’s going to be really nice to see the fans cheering for us on the stages. It helps to have three really good rallies under our belt going there, but I think that it’s going to be a tight fight. Hopefully we can have a good weekend.”

Hyundai Motorsport Preview: Round 10 – Rally Finland

Posted: September 30, 2021 12:34 PM

Hyundai Motorsport is ready to fly through the Finnish forests at the tenth round of the 2021 World Rally Championship (WRC) season, Rally Finland, where it will target a strong all-round performance with all three of its crews next weekend (October 1-3).

Hyundai Motorsport is aiming to continue its momentum from recent events, where it has demonstrated the performance of the Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC across a variety of surfaces. At the previous round of the season, Acropolis Rally, Estonian crew Ott Tänak and Martin Järveoja secured second place, their third podium of the season, with Dani Sordo and Cándido Carrera fourth. Thierry Neuville and Martijn Wydaeghe battled back from a power steering issue on Friday to recover to an eighth place finish on Sunday.

With the similarities to Rally Estonia, Hyundai Motorsport will field the same trio of crews on the gravel roads of Rally Finland. Neuville/Wydaeghe and Tänak/Järveoja will be joined by Craig Breen and Paul Nagle – the Irish crew’s first rally since their impressive podium at Ypres Rally Belgium.

The second of two visits to the country this year, Rally Finland will feature a markedly different profile to its Arctic counterpart as well as previous editions of the fast and furious event. With the event being held in autumn for the very first time, the conditions of the roads could become softer or rougher depending on the weather, with a potential for ice overnight as a result of cooler temperatures.

19 stages cover 287.11km of competitive distance at the Jyväskylä-based event. After shakedown on Friday morning, a mixed-surface street stage in the centre of the city opens the rally before crews head west to tackle five stages. Saturday is the longest day of the event, with nine stages comprising over half of the rally’s total distance. Two stages are run twice on Sunday to round out the fastest rally of the season.

Team Principal Andrea Adamo said:
“Our target for this weekend has to be consistency across our crews with the Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC. With its similarities to Rally Estonia, we have the potential to have a strong result if we work together well as a team and minimise mistakes and mishaps. Although Thierry and Craig finished on the podium in Estonia, we were left wondering what could have been with Ott, and now is our chance to put that right. The championship fight continues, and we need to maximise the remaining rallies to keep moving forward.”

Crew Notes: Thierry Neuville/Martijn Wydaeghe (#11 Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC)
Difficult return to gravel for Belgians last time out in Greece
Looking to secure second podium in Finland in 2021

Neuville said: “Rally Finland is a very popular event – in the past, it seemed only Scandinavians could win there, but other drivers have recently been getting faster in Finland as well. I haven’t been able to win it yet, but I have finished on the podium once in the past. It is a very nice event, but it’s one of the tougher ones for me. I am always fast at technical rallies where road position is very important, however in Finland the goal is to keep it flat and it’s very different to my natural driving style. However I am able to adapt, and this is where the recce plays a vital role; you need to have a lot of trust in your pace notes and just go for it. We know we have what it takes to finish on the podium, so that’s our target for next weekend.”

Crew Notes: Ott Tänak/Martin Järveoja (#8 Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC)
Estonians claimed third podium finish of 2021 at Acropolis Rally
Previously took victory Rally Finland in 2018 and 2019

Tänak said: “The characteristics of this rally will be very different. There is a big part of the route that we haven’t seen previously, so we will need to put a lot of effort into our recce to ensure our pace notes are completely accurate. The weather could also change quite a bit, so this will keep us on our toes. As the last full gravel rally with this generation of WRC cars – in my opinion, they are probably the best ever – I will definitely enjoy this event. The roads are normally both fun and challenging at the same time, and as it is so fast with small gaps we should have a great competition. Let’s see if we can take a third Rally Finland victory – we know our competitors and it will be tough, but we have worked very hard in the last two years so now is our chance to show we can fight in fast rallies.”

Crew Notes: Craig Breen/Paul Nagle (#42 Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC)
First WRC event since podium in Belgium
Irish crew aiming to replicate strong performance of Estonia

Breen said: “As a crew we tend to go well on events with this kind of profile, and I think this could be another strong event for us given our current form. The roads evolve every year, and as we’ve had a two-year break I think we will notice a lot of changes. In terms of set-up, you need a car that gives you confidence to carry the speed on the roads, and a stable rear will enable you to really chuck the car into those long, fast corners and jumps. It’s the rally where you have to be the most committed. I’m still searching for my first win – it feels like it has been eluding us now for some time, but we are getting closer and Finland will present one of the better opportunities this year, so we will do everything in our power to make it happen.”

WRC2 Overview

Competing with the brand-new Hyundai i20 N Rally2 in Finland will be Oliver Solberg with new co-driver Craig Drew and Jari Huttunen and Mikko Lukka.

Solberg was the sole entrant for the Hyundai Motorsport N team in Acropolis Rally, where the Swede was forced to retire with suspension damage after showing incredible pace in the opening stages of the event. It was the first time the new car had competed on gravel, and Solberg registered two stage victories before his rally came to a premature end.

Huttunen boasts previous success at his home event, having won his class in 2017 and claimed two second-place finishes in 2018 and 2019. Following his victory in Ypres Rally Belgium, the Finn is targeting a second consecutive visit to the top step of the WRC2 podium.

Solberg said: “This is probably the rally I have been looking forward to the most this year. I can’t wait to take the Hyundai i20 N Rally2 there – we saw we had good speed and we were leading in Greece. The roads are gravel again but they are very different from Acropolis and so much faster. One of the things I really look forward to is driving in the dark, which will add to the extra challenge. In terms of a result, I know there are some really fast guys who know almost every inch of these roads, so we have to be realistic. I am focused on taking the experience and enjoying driving the car. My new co-driver Craig is a good guy, a former team-mate and somebody I know well. I’m looking forward to working with him. ”

Huttunen said: “I am really looking forward to getting back into the Hyundai i20 N Rally2 in Finland. This will be my first WRC2 event on gravel with the car, so we might face a steep learning curve. I am hoping my existing knowledge of these roads will put me on the front foot next weekend, as I have finished on the podium in the past and taken a victory there. We have shown the car is capable of winning rallies in Ypres Rally Belgium, and I think we have the potential for another good result at this demanding and fast rally.”

Team Principal Andrea Adamo said: “In the tough conditions of Acropolis Rally, we demonstrated that the Hyundai i20 N Rally2 is capable of competing at the front of the field. Our crews will face a different set of tricky challenges in Rally Finland, however we are confident we can use our learnings from the car’s first two events to put together a strong weekend. We want to showcase the full potential of the car on gravel as well as secure another strong finish in Finland.”

Weekend at a Glance

The condensed itinerary in Rally Finland begins with shakedown on Friday morning, ahead of the mixed-surface Harju (2.31km) street stage in the centre of Jyväskylä. Ässämäki (12.31km) and Sahloinen-Moksi (21.37km) are run twice, split by a tyre fitting zone, follows by Oittila (19.75km).

Nine stages on Saturday covers more than half of the rally’s distance. Kakaristo-Hassi (18.17km), Päijälä (22.61km), Arvaja (13.49km) and Patajoki (20.55km) are run twice, with the loops split by service, before a repeat of Harju bring the day to an end.

Sunday features four stages; Laukaa (11.75km) and Ruuhimäki (11.12) are repeated with no service or tyre fitting zone to split the day’s action. The second pass of Ruuhimäki acts at the event’s Power Stage.

Entry List

Posted: September 30, 2021 12:33 PM

Finland (WRC) - NEW DATE 30 Sep-3 Oct 21 - ENTRY LIST

BACK TO WHEN IT BEGAN: 70TH ANNIVERSARY RALLY FINLAND SWITCHES TO AUTUMN DATE

Posted: April 20, 2021 6:58 AM

The 70th anniversary Rally Finland will take place from September 30-October 3 to give fans the best possible chance to follow the high-speed action in the forests around host city Jyväskylä.

Now counting as round ten of the 2021 FIA World Rally Championship season, the event had been due to run from July 29-August 1. However, in response to measures introduced in Finland to stop the spread of COVID-19 by cancelling mass gatherings until the summer, Rally Finland organiser AKK Sports has taken the decision to secure an alternative date later in the year.

With a new date confirmed, work is now underway to finalise the route of the event, which began life as the Jyväskylän Suurajot in 1951. Although details of the high-speed stages are being completed, Jyväskylä’s Pavilonki exhibition and conference centre will house the event headquarters, media centre and service park.

Riku Bitter, Chairman and CEO of AKK Sports Oy said:
“While we would like nothing more than for Rally Finland to take place in the summer, the reality of the COVID-19 pandemic means we could not go ahead with arranging the event with the lack of certainty that members of the public could attend. Unlike Arctic Rally Finland, which was held to great acclaim in February, Rally Finland is very much a made-for-spectators event and we need fans to make it work. Although there is no certainty that we will be able to welcome fans in October, we hope the rollout of the vaccination programme will go a long way to making this possible. We thank all the local authorities, the FIA and WRC Promoter for accommodating the new dates. We are sorry for any inconvenience the change causes but we are convinced it will be in the best interests of the rally, the stakeholders and all the fans.”

Yves Matton, FIA Rally Director, said:
“A founding round of the FIA World Rally Championship, Rally Finland is a historical and unmissable event on the WRC roster, with its spectacular forest scenery and super-fast roller coaster gravel roads. It was important for us to be flexible and consider every option to ensure it would find its place on the calendar this year despite ongoing issues brought about by the pandemic. It will be an interesting change to see it take place at the beginning of October, certainly with slightly different weather conditions, and hopefully with spectators.”

Simon Larkin, Event Director, WRC Promoter, said:
“Like all international sporting fixtures around the world, the 2021 FIA World Rally Championship calendar continues to be impacted by Covid-19. Through Rally Finland’s switch in dates from late-July to October, we believe this will give the best opportunity for fans to join us in the forests around Jyväskylä. The passion and enthusiasm of the fans in Finland is legendary and that atmosphere has unfortunately been missing during the pandemic, so we will take every chance to allow them to be safely welcomed back.”

Event Website

Posted: April 20, 2021 6:58 AM

Rally Finland