Starting the second proper day of rallying from the lead, Rovanperä set an incredible pace on the morning’s first special stage, showing his rivals his formidable speed.
However, disaster struck on the following stage.
Rovanperä took a right-hand corner too wide, and eventually, the car hit a bank. After the impact, Rovanperä and his co-driver Jonne Halttunen were merely passengers.
The car eventually rolled over and came to a stop on its side against a tree. Neither Rovanperä nor Halttunen were injured in the incident, but they had to withdraw from the rally for at least the rest of Saturday.
Footage of Rovanperä and Halttunen’s crash has been released on social media by a spectator.
Video of the incident below.
Shortly after, more drama occurred nearly at the same spot when WRC2 leader Oliver Solberg rolled his Skoda just beyond where Rovanperä crashed.
Disappointed, Rovanperä, Halttunen, and Solberg eventually gathered for a group photo next to the spot of the Finnish driver’s crash.
Hyundai’s Ott Tänak leads the Rally de Portugal after 12 special stages, with Toyota’s Sebastien Ogier just 0.2 seconds behind the Estonian.
