Kalle Rovanperä is the fashionable driver in the WRC. The young Toyota driver achieved his third victory in the World Championship in the last Swedish Rally, a triumph that has served to place him at the head of the championship general for the first time. Despite being in an extraordinary situation, Rovanperä says he didn’t have to take too many risks to win Rally Sweden, among other things because it did not have to exceed the limits. A confession that almost sounds like a declaration of intent from a driver who hopes to fight for the title.
After an interesting duel with Thierry Neuville during the first stage of Rally Sweden, Kalle took the lead of the event on Saturday morning, a position that he did not abandon in the remaining stages, despite the attacks of his partner Elfyn Evans. The Welshman’s problems paved the way for Rovanperä to prevail on the fast tracks of the Västerbotten region to claim his third World Cup win. A triumph that Kalle achieved, according to his own words, without having to go to the limit.
asked about it, Kalle Rovanperä He assured: «I would say that in some points I was close to the limit, but surprisingly the pace was quite good throughout the weekend. I didn’t need to go to the limit to win in Sweden, I didn’t feel at any time that I had to do anything crazy, so it was a bit of a surprise even for me. There are always little tense moments, but throughout the weekend we didn’t have any weight errors. I am very happy for it and for my victory».
Regarding the new location of Rally Sweden, now the World Championship event that has been held in a more northern region, Rovanperä added: «It is always good that we have adequate snow conditions for the only winter rally of the season, so I think it was good that we went a little further north of the country. In general, we have had very fast stages. Some of them I think were even a bit faster than expected, but other than that I would say that it has been a success».
Returning to Rovanperä’s performance, his boss Jari-Matti Latvala He was full of praise for his pupil: «You could see that the car worked well, but you still have to drive it and I would say that Kalle’s performance impressed me. Gotta keep a cool head, didn’t make a mistake and managed to make the difference with Thierry Neuville in the first stage small. Then on Saturday he attacked and escaped from the others to achieve victory. We have all worked very well and the final result proves it.”
Photos: FIA WRC