This time 12 months ago, life was a breeze for Kalle Rovanperä.
With his first World Rally Championship title already secure, the Finn was free to drive however he pleased in the last two rounds of the season, without any of the pressure that a title fight would have brought.
The result? A third-place finish in Spain and a distant 12th-place in Japan after a collision with a wall.
Fast forward to 2023, and the Finn finds himself still in the heat of a title battle with Toyota team-mate Elfyn Evans as the season reaches its final act.
With a healthy, but not unassailable, 31-point lead over Evans, a repeat of his 2022 results across the season’s last two rounds would put the prospect of back-to-back championships for Rovanperä in serious jeopardy. A third and a 12th simply won’t do.
The pressure to keep performing is on then. And Rovanperä knows it.
“It’s the second time I’m fighting for the title, and now this time it’s with a team-mate and it’s also much more close with the points,” said Rovanperä.
“So definitely there is more pressure and [a] more intense feeling for the last two rounds.”
So, does the pressure help or hinder?
Well, you or I might think it would make life harder. With the weight of the world on your shoulders, how can you possibly perform as well as someone with nothing to lose?
But Kalle Rovanperä isn’t like you and I. Predictably, pressure is something he relishes.
I think it should be a fairly good rally for us. We’ve had some good results on these kinds of roadsKalle Rovanperä
“I think it gives a good pressure,” said Rovanperä, when asked how it feels to be in a late-season title fight. “It will be, for sure, normally better when you have a bit of pressure to do well.
“You are more sharp, and normally you do a better job.”
In fairness pressure has never been a problem for the 23-year old, who has recently been testing in the Czech Republic with his Toyota team ahead of the WRC’s return to Tarmac on this week’s Central European Rally – something that Rovanperä is also feeling confident about.
“I think it should be a fairly good rally for us,” he said. “We’ve had some good results on these kinds of roads, so definitely I’m quite confident that the rally should be good.
“It’s nice to be back also on Czech Tarmac, I’ve been doing it before [but] not in the world championship. And also in Germany.
“[It’s a] mix of everything, it will certainly be an interesting rally.”
A sharp and confident Kalle Rovanperä certainly sounds ominous for title rival Evans, who must outscore Rovanperä to take the championship fight down to November’s Rally Japan.
But the Finn’s mindset ahead of CER is clear: win the title, ASAP.
“Definitely the approach will be straight from the start line to do a good job, and really push and fight for the title.
“Let’s hope that after this weekend, we have at least a bit clearer vision of how the title fight looks.
“Hopefully we can secure it.”
