Hot on the heels of Rally Estonia comes the World Rally Championship’s most iconic fast gravel event: Rally Finland.
Who should you be backing for victory on the rally they all want to win more than any other?
Here is our form guide heading into Rally Finland 2023:
#69 Kalle Rovanperä/Jonne Halttunen (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1)
Last 3 WRC results: 1st-2nd-3rd
Best Finland result: 2nd (2022)
After one of his most dominant victories to date on Rally Estonia, Kalle Rovanperä comes to his home country on the crest of a wave.
It would take a brave person to bet against him. And yet, Rovanperä has never won Rally Finland and readily admits to preferring Estonia.
Opening the road is likely to carry some disadvantage – unlikely to be huge – on Friday. But should the rain come it could actually be an advantage – and we know how strong the world champion is in the wet regardless.
The weight of home expectation on his shoulders, and a desire to preserve his healthy points lead, could count against him but don’t expect that to stop him challenging for victory.
#33 Elfyn Evans/Scott Martin (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1)
Last 3 WRC results: 4th-3rd-4th
Best Finland result: 1st (2021)
Elfyn Evans remains second in the championship standings following a run of form that has been solid if unspectacular after his Croatia win raised hopes that were dented again by a big crash in Portugal.
A third and two fourth positions on the past three WRC rounds have kept the points coming in nicely, but also allowed team-mate Rovanperä to start pulling away out front.
An impressive win on the autumnal Rally Finland in 2021 may bode well if it turns wet this week, and muddy stages could make the Welshman feel right at home.
Given that he’s still finding it tough to find the sweet spot of his GR Yaris, that could be just what Evans needs, but any podium finish would be a good result.
#11 Thierry Neuville/Martijn Wydaeghe (Hyundai i20 N Rally1)
Last 3 WRC results: 2nd-DSQ-1st
Best Finland result: 2nd (2013)
A few weeks ago, you’d have been hard-pushed finding anyone to predict Thierry Neuville being a candidate for victory on Rally Finland.
Since a very impressive second position in M-Sport Ford machinery a decade ago, high-speed gravel events have not been a happy hunting ground for Neuville – until last month’s Rally Estonia.
Working closely with Esapekka Lappi on development work has given Neuville much increased confidence in his i20 N in such conditions, culminating in a strong second position in Estonia.
Now 58 points down on Rovanperä, Neuville could do with another podium finish this weekend.
#8 Ott Tänak/Martin Järveoja (Ford Puma Rally1 Hybrid)
Last 3 WRC results: 8th-6th-35th
Best Finland result: 1st (2018, 2019, 2022)
That Rally Sweden win and second place in Croatia are starting to feel like a long time ago for Ott Tänak, who continues to push his M-Sport team to get the Ford Puma Rally1 Hybrid more suited to his style.
In some respects, Rally Estonia felt like a nadir for the partnership, with Tänak’s pre-event engine change immediately ruling him out of contention.
And yet, the pace Tänak was able to show on the event, winning six of the first eight stages, suggested that the Puma can’t be that far off from where he wants it.
Three wins on the event, including a breathtakingly on-the-edge performance in the Hyundai last year, prove Tänak’s Rally Finland credentials. Fired up after that Estonia setback, and with Rovanperä perhaps unwilling to push to the limit this week, does that make Tänak favorite?
#4 Esapekka Lappi/Janne Ferm (Hyundai i20 N Rally1)
Last 3 WRC results: 3rd-12th-2nd
Best Finland result: 1st (2017)
Esapekka Lappi has been having a fine 2023 season, with four podiums on the past five events. He himself reckons that he’s in the form of his life.
But third on Rally Estonia, behind team-mate Neuville, was arguably a slightly disappointing result for the Finn. He was hampered by hybrid problems on the Friday, but it was Estonia and Finland where many expected Lappi to lead the way for Hyundai and challenge for a win.
That will now be the target this week, on an event where he has been in the top four on his past three starts, as well as being a previous winner.
It’s six long years since Lappi took his one and only WRC victory to date on Rally Finland. That’s a long wait for win number two, but there could be no better opportunity to seal it than this weekend.
#18 Takamoto Katsuta/Aaron Johnston (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1)
Last 3 WRC results: 7th-4th-40th
Best Finland result: 6th (2022)
Shorn of confidence, Takamoto Katsuta knows he needs to turn the corner sooner rather than later. The trouble is, that’s hard to do when you’re stuck in the proverbial rut.
Katsuta has finished only four of the eight WRC rounds this season without recourse to super-rally, and has only once climbed higher than sixth.
He appears to have found it particularly tough when driving Toyota’s third car nominated for manufacturers’ points. In that sense, seventh in Estonia was an improvement, as he at least brought the car home safely, albeit disappointed with his pace.
Although there will be four GR Yarises in action this week, team principal Jari-Matti Latvala is not nominated so Katsuta will still be scoring makes’ points. But he has the full backing of his team, so shouldn’t feel under too much pressure to perform.
A safe drive to somewhere around the top six in his adopted home country, on a rally where he doesn’t have a great record, would be ideal.
#7 Pierre-Louis Loubet/Nicolas Gilsoul (Ford Puma Rally1 Hybrid)
Last 3 WRC results: 6th-7th-DNF
Best Finland result: 14th (2019)
Sixth in Estonia was a solid result for Pierre-Louis Loubet, although he didn’t find it easy and didn’t get close to Tänak’s pace in the sister Puma.
High-speed gravel rallies have not generally been the Frenchman’s forte and his Finland record doesn’t make good reading. His best finish was 14th (fourth in WRC2) four years ago.
That should have been bettered last year – Loubet’s only top-class start on the event. But after a steady drive to eighth position, he retired on the road section to the powerstage.
A couple of notches up from that are likely to be a reasonable target for M-Sport’s second driver this week.
#3 Teemu Suninen/Mikko Markkula (Hyundai i20 N Rally1)
Last 3 WRC results: 5th-6th-10th
Best Finland result: 4th (2017)
Teemu Suninen impressed many, including his own team, with his performance on Rally Estonia – his first start in a top-class car since 2021.
Suninen blended decent pace with enough caution to safely bring the car home in fifth position, maximizing his seat time as he gets to grip with Rally1 hybrid power.
Now, his task is to bring that confidence to his home event and take the pace up a fraction while still not making any mistakes. It’s quite a tough challenge on an unforgiving event as he seeks to make the right impression on what is currently his last scheduled start in the car.
But Suninen has always been quick in Finland, and finished fourth with M-Sport in 2017 on just his second event in a World Rally Car. A similar result would be ideal, and a podium is not unrealistic.
#97 Jari-Matti Latvala/Juho Hänninen (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1)
Last 3 WRC results: DNF-5th-DNF
Best Finland result: 1st (2010, 2014, 2015)
The Toyota team principal is returning to the role of Toyota driver for one rally only this week. His ‘form’ is of course non-existent, having not contested a rally at world level since a privateer outing on Rally Sweden in 2020.
That didn’t last long, with an engine failure on the first leg ruling him out. Before that, Latvala’s last full season in the WRC came in 2019, when Finland was one of only two events where he claimed a podium finish.
Statistically, it’s his second best event in the WRC, with three wins to his name – two for Volkswagen and one for Ford.
But none of that really matters. Latvala is here to experience hybrid Rally1 cars in competition, to sample his drivers’ setups, and learn more about the car – as well as enjoy himself behind the wheel. Reaching the finish anywhere from around fourth to eighth will be a success.
