Lappi stepped away from the WRC after the 2024 season and moved to compete in the Finnish Championship. He has repeatedly emphasised that the decision was absolutely the right one.
Lappi dominated the national championship almost from start to finish. At the season-opening Arctic Rally, rising star Tuukka Kauppinen managed to finish ahead of him, but after Lappi’s winning streak began in Savonlinna in March, it continued until the end of the season. Eventually, he and his co-driver Enni Mälkönen were crowned champions.
Lappi’s participation brought a completely new level of interest to the Finnish Championship, but at the same time, the WRC now faces the threat of decline. The series’ brightest young star, Kalle Rovanperä, will leave after this season, and the technical regulations set to change in 2027 are still surrounded by uncertainty.
On Friday, Lappi held a medal celebration in Vantaa with members of the media and offered a rather grim forecast for the WRC’s future.
“The regulations still aren’t entirely clear,” Lappi pointed out.
“M-Sport has already announced that they won’t have time to finish their new car, and Hyundai won’t be bringing a new car either. That means only Toyota would be there. And that means there wouldn’t really be a championship at all,” Lappi declared.
What do you mean by saying there wouldn’t be a championship at all?
“I just don’t see how there could be a championship if there’s only one manufacturer,” Lappi told Rallyjournal.com.
“Of course, Toyota could always put in one more driver, so there’d be six Toyotas. At least then you’d know who would win the manufacturers’ title bonuses,” Lappi quipped.
However, Lappi has a clear idea of how to bring in more manufacturers — potentially quite a few. He would scrap the tubular-frame design.
“The Rally2 car would be the solution, or Rally2 Plus,” he said plainly.
“Then there’d be loads of manufacturers. But someone’s opposing it. Someone doesn’t want it. I don’t know,” Lappi pondered.
