Evans and his teammate Kalle Rovanperä were neck and neck on the first forest stages. Evans briefly took the lead after the Myhinpää stage, but Rovanperä reclaimed the top spot on the Ruuhimäki stage, ending the loop 0.2 seconds ahead of the Welshman.
Conditions were extremely challenging during the four morning stages, with heavy rain in some sections.
“It’s been pretty difficult out there. Sometimes the grip has not been too bad, other times really quite bad. These grassy cuts have obviously become quite muddy, so that makes things quite difficult,” Evans described after arriving at the Friday midday service.
According to Evans, he has not been overly cautious, but driving on the fast gravel stages presents significant challenges.
“It’s a bit frustrating when you have a section where you’re maybe under driving a little bit and then out of nowhere comes the slippy corner and you’re a bit on the limit. So, it’s always hard to judge in these conditions.”
In the previous round in Latvia, Evans did not manage to compete for the top positions, but now he is in the mix for the win. The Toyota driver is used to success in Finland, defending his victory from last year.
For the championship battle, it is crucial for Evans to score big points in Jyväskylä, but the Welshman is not getting ahead of himself.
“It’s the result at the end that counts. Not the fact that we’re good on the first morning,” Evans emphasised.
