Ott Tänak: “In the end, I was just using the handbrake”

After just two stages, including two runs on the 31.05 km Sarriojärvi stage, Ott Tänak – who had yet to score any points – returned to the Lapland city of Rovaniemi as the leader in his Hyundai i20 WRC. After setting two fastest times, he was 16.2 seconds ahead of his team-mate Craig Breen, who is making his season debut at the Arctic Circle. Trailing by 20.4 seconds, 20-year-old local favourite Kalle Rovanperä, in a Toyota Yaris WRC, finished the first day of his first home rally. The second home rally, the Finnish gravel classic, will take place in late July/early August.

Leader Tänak, who had to sit out the final stage in Monte Carlo due to tyre trouble, explained: “I tried to look after my tyres at the start, and after 10 km of the final special stage I thought the tyres were done for, and I knew there were still 20 km to go. In the end, I was just using the handbrake. I tried to get through it okay, but it was difficult – it’s just such a hard surface.”

Breen said: “Shocking. The last 3 km were a big surprise for me. I didn’t think I’d lose so many studs.”

Local favourite Rovanperä wasn’t entirely satisfied and criticised the condition of the stage: “Not good. The track is in a very poor condition with a lot of gravel already, so my front tyres are completely worn out and I lost a lot of time at the end. If someone can manage their tyres really well, they’ll be very, very fast.”

Seven-time champion Sébastien Ogier, leading the standings, was once again in his familiar role as the ‘snow plough’ in the deep snow at the Arctic Circle and, as the first car on the snow-covered forest tracks in his Toyota Yaris WRC, lost time accordingly. He finished the first day in Finland in ninth place (+49.8). “It’s always the same old story. I did what I could, but it was quite difficult,” reported the defending champion and eight-time Monte Carlo record winner Ogier. “We’ll see what we can do tomorrow, but it looks as though we’re already quite a long way off.”

Teemu Suninen is hoping to make amends after his horrific crash at the season opener and finished sixth (+34.5) in his Ford Fiesta WRC. Behind Japan’s Takamoto Katsuata (+38.8) in a Toyota, 19-year-old Oliver Solberg finished eighth (+45.9) on his WRC debut in a Hyundai i20 WRC.

All cars are fitted with studded tyres. Each of the narrow Pirelli tyres is fitted with 384 7 mm-long studs. These provide the necessary grip on the snow-covered and frozen forest tracks, with top speeds of up to 200 km/h sometimes even being reached. Ott Tänak achieved an average speed of 132 km/h in the Hyundai i20 WRC during his fastest run in the shakedown. Temperatures at the rally’s hub, Rovaniemi, were just below freezing

Standings after the 2nd of 10 special stages

Pos.

Team/Nat/Car

Time/Difference

1

Tänak/Järveoja (EE), Hyundai

31:50.7

2

Breen/Nagle (IRL), Hyundai

+ 16.2

3

Rovanperä/Halttunen (FIN), Toyota

+ 20.4

4

Neuville/Wydaeghe (B), Hyundai

+ 29.8

5

Evans/Martin (GB), Toyota

+ 32.0

6

Suninen/Markkula (FIN), Ford

+ 34.5

7

Katsuta/Barritt (JP/GB), Toyota

+ 38.8

8

O. Solberg/Marshall (S/GB), Hyundai

+ 45.9

9

Ogier/Ingrassia (F), Toyota

+ 49.8

10

Greensmith/Edmondson (GB), Ford

+ 1:05.8