Rovanperä claims home success with Hankook at the Rally Finland

Finnish duo Kalle Rovanperä and Jonne Halttunen produced a masterclass at the Secto Rally Finland to end an eight-year wait for a home winner in the WRC. Rovanperä, on Hankook tyres, achieved an average speed of 129.95 kilometres per hour at the fastest rally in WRC history, at the end of which he claimed victory by 39.2 seconds. The Finn took the lead on Friday’s opening stage and never looked back. Clean runs on both loops of the legendary Ouninpohja stages were key to his success – as were the Hankook rally tyres: they quickly reached their optimal temperature, offered a consistently high level of grip, and provided stability on all surfaces, allowing Rovanperä to continuously extend his lead. Victory puts the Finnish driver right back in the thick of the title race. He now trails championship leader Elfyn Evans (Great Britain), who ended the event in fourth place, by just three points. An exciting battle developed for the remaining two places on the podium, with the drivers supported by the fine performance of the Hankook tyres. In the end, just 8.9 seconds separated Takamoto Katsuta (Japan), Sébastien Ogier (France) and Evans. Katsuta finished second, 5.9 seconds ahead of Ogier.

Highlights of the Rally Finland: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PcLLpUXd3Hg