Rovanperä delivered an excellent performance throughout the rally, engaging in an extremely tight battle of seconds with his teammate Sébastien Ogier.
However, Ogier went off the road on Saturday morning, significantly easing Rovanperä’s task. After that, the Finn only needed to control the situation – something he did brilliantly.
Rovanperä also collected valuable points for the championship on Sunday, finishing third on the rally-ending Power Stage and taking the same position in the Super Sunday standings. Altogether, he gathered a total of 31 points from Central Europe and has now climbed to share second place in the World Rally Championship standings with Ogier. Both drivers now have 234 points.
“The aim, of course, was to push properly on the final three special stages, because we know those points are important for the championship fight,” Rovanperä commented immediately after the finish.
“Fortunately, we started well. Our chances are not the best, but they’re improving all the time,” Rovanperä said, referring to the title battle.
Rovanperä has now taken his second win of the season on asphalt. The first came earlier in the spring in the Canary Islands. The conditions were slightly different this time, but still very suitable for the Finn.
“Even if the weather is dry, this rally is always a big challenge. This year there were many ucncuts, which was actually good – it kept the rally cleaner, more like a proper asphalt rally. Still, we saw plenty of dirt on the road and tricky spots in many places. That made it really demanding,” Rovanperä recounted.
Rovanperä’s co-driver Jonne Halttunen was already turning his attention to winning the championship – the ultimate goal.
“If we can just win these two remaining rallies, then we’ll win the title. That’s the goal, Halttunen said.
Rovanperä nodded beside him.
“I’m not very good at maths, but I do know that,” Rovanperä laughed.
The World Rally Championship continues next in Japan from 6 to 9 November. The season-ending Rally Saudi Arabia will take place at the end of November.
