Lindholm and Hämäläinen held a commanding lead in the WRC2 category on Sunday. In practice, Lindholm simply needed to drive cautiously through the four remaining special stages, and the win would have been his.
However, on Sunday’s second stage, disaster struck for the Finnish pair. Lindholm approached a crest with too much speed and went wide in the following corner.
“The downhill section after the jump before the corner was really slippery, and I just couldn’t get our car to turn into the next bend – we went straight on. The car got stuck on its underside in a gravel embankment,” Lindholm recounted.
The car itself wasn’t seriously damaged, and a number of spectators were on site. But due to an unusual decision by the organisers, the Finnish crew didn’t receive any pushing assistance.
“About ten spectators quickly arrived and tried to push us back onto the road, but we would have needed more help because the car was firmly stuck on its underside and would have needed lifting out of the gravel. The marshals at the location prevented the crowd from reaching our car,” said Lindholm.
Lindholm won the WRC2 championship in 2022, but hasn’t managed a class victory in the World Rally Championship since. A win in Sardinia would have been a much-needed result, but instead, the top finish slipped through his fingers.
“This is a big disappointment, and I’m feeling very down. I’m sorry for our team, Škoda, and all of our partners, because they all support us with such passion.”
“Now we have to analyse what happened and focus on the Acropolis Rally in Greece,” Lindholm concluded.
Following Lindholm’s retirement, fellow Finnish driver Lauri Joona took the WRC2 lead. However, Joona also missed out on the win after suffering a puncture on the penultimate stage of the Sardinian gravel rally.
The WRC2 class win ultimately went to Italy’s Roberto Daprà, followed by Poland’s Kajetan Kajetanowicz and Czech veteran Martin Prokop.
