Kalle Rovanperä, Toyota GAZOO Racing driver, significantly increased his lead in the Secto Rally Finland on Saturday morning after his teammate Elfyn Evans dropped positions due to a technical problem. Rovanperä, who started this leg of the ninth event of the World Rally Championship with an 8.0 second lead over Evans, saw his gap grow to double digits after the first stage of the day. The unfortunate Evans suffered a broken front-right driveshaft in the Västilä test, forcing him to continue in road mode, costing him more than six minutes and relegating him to eighth place.
Sébastien Ogier, also from Toyota, climbed to second place, although after Rovanperä set the fastest times in all three of the morning’s superfast stages, he was 21.9 seconds behind the Finn at midday. Thierry Neuville of Hyundai was third, 36.4 seconds further back.
The morning was favorable for Neuville's championship hopes. Evans' problems, along with Ott Tänak's retirement on Friday, allowed the Belgian to extend his championship lead, which was only eight points before the rally. Adrien Fourmaux of M-Sport Ford was fourth, 28.1 seconds behind Neuville, while his teammate Grégoire Munster had a tough morning, rolling his Puma Rally1 in the first stage of the day.
New Toyota driver Sami Pajari was in fifth position, ahead of WRC2 frontrunners Oliver Solberg and Jari-Matti Latvala. Evans, after his issues, was positioned eighth, while Robert Virves and Mikko Heikkilä completed the top 10.
Rovanperä's performance on Saturday's stages, where he won five out of six tests, allowed him to extend his overnight lead from 8.0 seconds to 44.2 seconds, securing him 18 provisional championship points. His teammate Ogier added 15 points, while Neuville earned 13 points by closing the podium. Fourmaux, in fourth place, gained 10 points, and Pajari, in his debut, secured 8 points.
The possibility of Toyota using team orders to help Evans was ruled out when his 16-minute delay leaving service due to the driveshaft repair relegated him from second to eighth place. An additional penalty of 2 minutes and 40 seconds left him out of the points, in 16th place, after stage 14 in Västilä.
Afternoon rains made conditions even more challenging for drivers on some of the season’s fastest and most demanding roads. Despite a downpour interrupting his run, Rovanperä managed to beat Ogier by 6.7 seconds in one of the tests. Ogier, for his part, opted for a more conservative approach due to the gaps between drivers.
In stage 15, with standing water, Hyundai's Esapekka Lappi recorded the fastest time, although Rovanperä maintained a 39.4-second lead over Ogier. The second pass through Ouninpohja, in drier conditions, allowed for faster times, with Rovanperä ending the day with an average speed of 136 km/h.
The final day of the rally will consist of four stages, covering a total of 41.66 kilometers.
| Position | Team | Driver/Co-Driver | Car |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rovanperä/Halttunen | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrid | - |
| 2 | Ogier/Landais | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrid | +44.2 |
| 3 | Neuville/Wydaeghe | Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid | +1:23.8 |
| 4 | Fourmaux/Coria | Ford Puma Rally1 Hybrid | +1:49.7 |
| 5 | Pajari/Mälkönen | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrid | +2:19.2 |
| 6 | Solberg/Edmondson | Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 | +7:32.4 |
| 7 | Latvala/Hänninen | Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 | +8:20.0 |
| 8 | Joona/Hussi | Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 | +8:52.4 |