Four rallies to go, and 25 points are all that’s in it. Can Elfyn Evans do the improbable and deny Kalle Rovanperä a second World Rally Championship title in a row?
That’s the question on everybody’s lips – not least our podcast team’s – as the WRC returns after its summer break with Acropolis Rally Greece this week.
But Colin Clark has a theory: the ordering of the calendar is actually helping Elfyn Evans and spicing up this battle.
He explained: “If we were going straight into the two Tarmac rallies, Kalle would have it done and dusted with two to go, no question. No matter what the weather, he could drive around and get second or third place quite easily, no problems.
“But it’s that unknown element of risk, car damage, the slight chance of a mistake – and OK Rovanperä doesn’t make many mistakes but any mistake could be heavily punished. [With] big rocks, anything could happen.
“A DNF on this event is a real possibility, and that’s what for me keeps the champion really, really interesting. We’re lucky we’re going to Greece – what is going to be a really challenging Greece and that does keep it very much alive.
“But you know Elfyn Evans is in the same position. He cannot afford either to be winning this rally or finishing second, neither can Thierry Neuville. The calendar is working for us in keeping this very much alive this year.”
Join Clark, David Evans and George Donaldson who, along with host Lisa O’Sullivan, deliver a full preview of this week’s Acropolis Rally Greece.
And look out for discussion on bears, snakes and the British Rally Championship too!
