The second of two back-to-back high-speed gravel rounds of the World Rally Championship takes place this weekend as Rally Finland comes hot on the heels of Rally Estonia.
A mainstay of the WRC, and one of its most prestigious events, the ‘Finnish Grand Prix’ is likely to be as spectacular as ever.
World champion Kalle Rovanperä is yet to win his home round of the WRC, but will anyone be able to deny him this weekend?
Meanwhile, it’s tight at the top of the WRC2 standings ahead of what could be a crucial event.
Here’s all the key information you need ahead of round nine of the WRC:
Entry breakdown
Total 67 crews
9 Rally1 cars
36 Rally2 cars (27 WRC2)
14 Rally3 cars
Rally1
The top-class entry for Rally Finland increases by one from the eight cars that started Rally Estonia. That is because Toyota’s Jari-Matti Latvala steps away from team principal duties for one round only as he makes his first WRC start since a privateer entry for Rally Sweden in 2020.Latvala pilots Toyota’s fourth GR Yaris Rally1. So, in the absence of Sébastien Ogier, it will again by Takamoto Katsuta who is nominated for manufacturers’ points alongside Estonia dominator Rovanperä and Elfyn Evans.
Otherwise, the entry is identical to Estonia. On home ground, Teemu Suninen completes the second of his two confirmed drives in Hyundai’s third car alongside full-time drivers Thierry Neuville – who so impressed in Estonia – and Esapekka Lappi.
Ott Tänak and Pierre-Louis Loubet fill their regular seats in M-Sport’s lineup of Ford Puma Rally1 cars.
WRC2
The WRC2 entry is a mouth-watering prospect once again.
Championship leader Yohan Rossel contests his first event in the championship since Sardinia two months ago. He may have a tough time adding to his victory tally aboard the PH Sport Citroën C3 Rally2 against a very strong field.
Fresh from success in Estonia, Andrea Mikkelsen (Škoda Fabia RS Rally2) will be aiming for his third WRC2 win on the bounce. His Toksport team-mate Sami Pajari is also on a high, having claimed a maiden WRC2 podium last time out.
Also in the Toksport camp are Oliver Solberg and Gus Greensmith who are reversing roles compared with Estonia. This time Solberg is not scoring WRC2 points, while Greensmith – twice a winner already this year – looks to take advantage and climb back into the championship table’s top three.
Marco Bulacia and home driver Jari Huttunen are two more contenders in Fabia RSs, while Lauri Joona will dash back from Italy’s ERC round this weekend to compete in the older model.
ERC regular and reigning Finnish champion Mikko Heikkilä will do likewise, and could be one to watch in his Fabia RS.
Emil Lindholm will continue his acclimatization to the Hyundai i20 N after an impressive third on his debut in the car in Estonia. Young Estonian Georg Linnamäe, who was running fourth in his home event before going off the road, is also in a Hyundai.
Adrien Fourmaux leads the Ford challenge in his M-Sport Fiesta Rally2. He is joined in the team by Grégoire Munster, while JWRC champion Robert Virves is also Ford-mounted.
WRC3
Rally Finland is not part of the Junior WRC calendar but there is still a strong 14-car entry of Rally 3 cars.
Category dominator Roope Korhonen leads the way in his Ford Fiesta Rally3. Fellow Finns make up more than half of the entry, and include Toni Herranen, who has two WRC3 podiums to his name this year.
Turkish driver Ali Türkkan was third in WRC3 in Sardinia and fourth on Rally Estonia. Markus Manninen (Renault Clio Rally3) is the sole non-Ford starter.
Itinerary
This year’s Rally Finland features some significant changes to its route, including a new harbor-side ceremonial start in Jyväskylä on Wednesday evening, before Thursday’s shakedown.The competitive element of the event is made up of 22 stages, beginning with a first run through the Harju superspecial on Thursday evening.There are nine stages on Friday on a loop to the north-east of Jyväskylä. Laukaa, Lankamaa, Myhinpää and Halttula (which is a brand-new stage) each run twice before another blast through the superspecial.
The 10-mile Myhinpää test is a particularly exciting addition; one of Finland’s most famous stages, its inclusion for the first time since 2015 likely played a part in Toyota team principal Jari-Matti Latvala’s keenness to compete this week.
Saturday and Sunday are spent to the south-west of Jyväskylä. Saturday’s leg is the longest and makes up half of the rally’s total mileage.
The format is again a repeated loop of four stages but these are longer. Västilä (new for 2023), Päijälä, Rapsula and Vekkula are each around 12 miles in length.
There are just four stages on Sunday to the south of Jyväskylä. After the Moksi-Sahloinen 10-miler, crews will get their first run through Himos-Jämsä, which at just under six miles will later serve as the powerstage. That comes after another pass through Himos-Jämsä and a pre-powerstage tire-fitting zone.
The total competitive mileage over the four days comes in at a touch under 200 miles.
