Lappi’s original plan was to contest only a full Finnish Rally Championship season this year, until plans changed towards the end of the year.
Lappi’s phone rang unexpectedly, and on the other end of the line was Hyundai team principal Cyril Abiteboul. He asked the Finn whether he would be interested in returning to the World Rally Championship and driving the team’s third car in selected events next season.
Lappi considered the matter for a moment and ultimately decided to answer the question in the affirmative. Lappi’s competition calendar has not yet been made public, but it is certain that his WRC campaign will begin at Rally Sweden in mid-February. In addition, Lappi will most likely compete in Finland and Estonia, as well as in other fast gravel rallies. Lappi will not be seen on the start line at the Rally Monte Carlo, as the traditional season opener takes place too close to the Arctic Rally, a round of the Finnish Rally Championship. Lappi said on Thursday that his competition calendar for next season has been built around the Finnish Rally Championship – not on the terms of the WRC.
Lappi returned to the wheel of Hyundai’s Rally1 car for the first time already in December, when he carried out tests at the test area in Jämsä. The experience was mostly positive.
“As everyone probably saw from the pictures, the conditions maybe weren’t the most optimal when thinking about winter conditions, but at least I got back up to speed with Rally1 a bit again and got used to the aerodynamics,” Lappi says to RallyJournal.com.
Lappi naturally has a lot of experience with a top-category car, but the December test was still partly a new experience for him. Current Rally1 cars no longer feature a hybrid unit – as they still did in the 2024 season, when Lappi last competed in the top class.
“Now there wasn’t that battery, nor the extra power coming from it, but also not the extra mass, which of course makes things easier. The car is a bit more agile and behaves better,” Lappi says.
Hyundai has struggled in recent years with the performance of its car, and especially compared to Toyota, the team’s car has not been where it should be. However, progress has been made.
“Admittedly, there were other things that were better as well, at least compared to the last time I drove it,” Lappi reveals.
“Of course, we also had some development parts with us there that have been homologated for this year, and they haven’t done a single competitive kilometre yet. We’ll see how it really works once we get to drive it on snow,” Lappi continues.
Can we draw the conclusion from this that you were quite satisfied with the car?
“In those conditions, yes. I’m waiting with interest and even excitement to see what it’s like in proper snow conditions. If it works on snow in that way, then I definitely have quite a good feeling,” Lappi smiles.
