Throughout the years, the premise of rallying has always stayed true: be the quickest driver from point A to point B over a series of stages. But in a world of rapidly developing technology, quite how to achieve that has evolved greatly.
Today, rally drivers don’t just have to be fast on the day; they need to be meticulously prepared for the challenge ahead and ready to deal with any possible scenario. In short, the modern rally driver must have much more in their arsenal than just being handy behind the wheel.
Work completed away from the stages is now just as important for the end result, as proved by the success of Rautio Motorsport drivers throughout the 2024 season. Rautio won both major Finnish titles: SM1 with Roope Korhonen and SM3 with teenage talent Tuukka Kauppinen. Former World Rally Championship factory driver Teemu Suninen also remains part of the program with his three podiums and 15 stage wins at the sport’s highest level.
It’s no coincidence that all Rautio Motorsport drivers are at the top of their game right now. Preparing like a world champion will help any driver on their journey to becoming one. But they can’t do that without the right facilities. What follows is an explanation of the two key reasons why Finland has a new junior driver development powerhouse.
The perfect fitness facility
Do you know what Jari-Matti Latvala has in common with Formula 1 winners and world champions Lewis Hamilton, Sebastian Vettel, Mika Häkkinen, Kimi Räikkönen and Heikki Kovalainen?
Yes, they’re all high achievers in motorsport – but this isn’t a question of statistics. It’s about how they prepared before hitting the road. Kuortane Olympic Training Center is Finland’s elite facility, working with some of the best athletes across a vast array of sports and disciplines, many of whom have progressed to world and Olympic titles.
Kuortane Olympic Training Center has over 20 years experience training motorsport athletes
Tapio Korjus knows what it takes to make it to the top, he won gold in the Olympic javelin competition in 1988 and is now the director of the Kuortane OTC. These days he’s as au fait with working with drivers as he is Olympians.
“We had a very good relationship with Aki Hintsa, who was my doctor when I competed as an athlete and later became doctor of the McLaren Formula 1 team,” Korjus says. “When we started with Mika Häkkinen and Aki Hinsta, the basic situation was that those drivers were not in very good physical condition, cardiovascular condition. Therefore, we developed a special program to test performance and to train them.
“We have nutrition programs and some mental programs, but mostly in our center we concentrate on training and developing the physical performance: endurance, speed and strength. Nowadays, these drivers are at a good level. And if you have a better physical condition, normally you also have better self-confidence.”
Utilizing experienced trainers like Tommi Pärmäkoski, who helped Vettel to three Formula 1 world titles, and Jaakko Ojaniemi who has worked with multiple grand prix winner Valtteri Bottas in the past, each athlete is given their own specific training program, complete with a long-term vision and performance goals and targets. But what really helps the Kuortane Olympic Training Center stand out is the range of expertise within the facility.
Korjus explains: “If you think about it for anyone in motorsport, we are better than many, many other places because we are a full-service Olympic Training Center – we have all those facilities for different sports.
Kuortane's diverse range of contacts and experts across the sports world helps it stand out
“We put together all our knowledge from all the other top-level sports into motorsport. Whether that be team sports or individual sports, we have ice hockey players, volleyball players, football players, gymnasts, wrestlers, swimmers, bowlers and track and field athletes using the center. So we put together experience from all of those which a driver can learn and benefit from. For example, Tomas Käyhkö is very highly ranked in the world of bowling, and recently he worked with the wrestlers in physical training. It’s a very important point how much you can learn from other people from different disciplines.
“We are open-minded, we are looking around, and we are listening to everything that is going on in all top-level sports, and implementing it here in Kuortane including modern remote coaching technology. And, of course, having worked in motorsport for almost 30 years, we have such a large database from different motorsport drivers, in Formula 1 or rally driving. We know what kind of level you need to be at to be the best in the world in Formula 1 or the World Rally Championship. ”
Teemu Suninen has been using Kuortane OTC for the past two years. He can do a lot of the physical work from his home in Tallinn as well as in the physical center itself.
“They are able to offer physical training, mental training, coaching for how you should eat and sleep. It’s proper,” Suninen says.
“There are super-good facilities to do basically anything. I think, in a way, rally drivers don’t have to be top-top athletes in any particular sports, but you have to have a high level of fitness. In rallying we are a bit delayed on the coaching sides compared to Formula 1, but I have been able to learn a lot of their practices because of Kuortane’s good connections to the Formula 1 coaches. Using a facility as good as this has given me an edge.
“The key thing is to do the correct amount of the training to fit your needs. My trainers are able to follow my progress and what I am doing via smart devices and SprintAI remote coaching platform, so they can see how well I have recovered, how well I sleep and they can adjust the training load depending on the recovery. And depending on the workload stress from the rallies or travelling, they adjust my training program to be a bit easier for that specific week.”
Newly crowned Finnish champion Korhonen is also feeling the benefits. Rally Italy is one of the toughest tests for any rally driver: searing heat from the unfiltered Sardinian sun can sometimes lead to cockpit temperatures as high as 50°C (104°F). Training at Kuortane OTC with coach Arttu Sissala was critical to ensuring the 26-year-old was fit enough to thrive when behind the wheel on Italy’s WRC round earlier this year.
“If you drive in hot conditions, you have to really be in good shape,” Korhonen explains. “I have to say, a few years ago my fitness was maybe not so good! But now it is much better as I’m doing the right things. Being in good shape is only one part of motorsport, but it is important if you want to be the best in the world.”
A world-leading simulator program
As Korhonen points out, being physically prepared is just one part of the puzzle to becoming champion. Another key element is driving skill and time on a simulator can be invaluable in that direction.
Practically every single driver uses them in one form or another, but the Crazy Finn Academy operation – located near Kuortane OTC – is a step above anything else out there for a young rally driver who doesn’t enjoy the benefits of a manufacturer-provided facility.
Crazy Finn Academy is focused on driver development, rather than car development
As simulator specialist Andy Symonds (who helped design and install state-of-the-art simulators for the majority of current Formula 1 teams) puts it: “This just takes it up a notch. This is halfway between a very good home rig and a fully blown factory sim.”
It is widely acknowledged that due to the large number of variables in rallying, chiefly the evolving condition of the road, simulators are currently better suited to circuit racers than rally drivers. But that doesn’t mean rally pilots can’t learn a thing or two.
“There are maybe three main things that young drivers can do to improve their driving skills,” Suninen says.
“You can travel outside of your home country to do recce practice and then you see different types of roads. Then you can just train with your car as many kilometers as you want depending how much time and budget you have, and then you can drive in a simulator.
“This is by far the most cost effective thing to do, and, of course, you can drive all types of different cars. For example you can drive a Rally1 car, which young drivers don’t have the possibility to do in real life. And once you go back to Rally2 car again, it might feel easier to drive because it’s slower.”
Roope Korhonen estimates he uses the CFA simulator once a month to hone his skills
There’s another key difference to the factory sims with Crazy Finn Academy’s rigs – the onus is purely on developing the driver, rather than testing and developing the car.
“Top teams use their simulators as engineering tools to make the car better. It’s mainly about: does the steering wheel work, what’s the best setup for you at this particular track?” Symonds says. “Whereas we go into how you’re using the brake, how you’re using the steering wheel, when you should be changing gear, tire temperatures etc. So it’s more driver focused than car focused. If you’re a driver, we can give you any help, advice or training that you need.”
There are a range of different simulators available, catering for Formulas 4, 3, 2 and 1 through to GT racing, go-karting and of course rallying. Young Finnish racing prodigy Tuukka Taponen, a member of Ferrari’s driver academy, is one of many youngsters (among a fleet of established pros) using CFA’s simulators, as well as Rautio Motorsport’s drivers Suninen, Korhonen and Kauppinen.
The very fact you can go rallying on Crazy Finn Academy’s simulator offers unique appeal, especially as a tool to develop driver-co-driver relationships.
Symonds explains: “It came out as a little bit of a fluke. For F1 and track racing cars, it’s one driver in the vehicle. But in my chassis, there’s two seats. So why don’t we drive down the road slowly and you can practice pacenotes? And then to go through again and refine your pacenotes, and go through again and refine it further. And then you can hit the stage with a full practice with your co-driver reading the pacenotes.
“So it’s not just about the driver and the car model anymore. It’s more: are you working effectively as a team to get down the road as fast as you can?”
Several drivers have done just that with their co-drivers, and the benefit is obvious. Particularly combined with the work done at Kuortane Olympic Training Center, it’s clear these tools are what drivers need to take their performance to the next level.
Korhonen concludes: “Being part of the Rautio Motorsport program and benefiting from these training camps at two world-class facilities is a big thing for me and my career.
“I think it’s really important if you want to improve your driving and everything else around it. My goal is to be World Rally Champion one day, and I know this is helping me achieve my dream.”
