The Finnish Rally Championship continues this weekend with the SM Tuuri Ralli. Jari-Matti Latvala, hailing from Tuuri, will compete in his historic-class Toyota Celica alongside co-driver Enni Mälkönen.
“I’m looking forward to the event. A week ago, the weather seemed a bit unfavorable, but now we’ve had night frosts. I believe the roads will be clean and icy, so there’s good grip and there are snow banks,” Latvala tells RallyJournal.com.
For Latvala, this is the first time he will be racing on his home region’s stages.
“In my lifetime, there has never been a Finnish Rally Championship event in Tuuri before. There have been two Miljoona Rallies there in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Back then, I was too young to compete. It’s a unique moment to be able to race on my own home roads,” Latvala enthuses.
Latvala also participated in the Arctic Lapland Rally, in February, where he fought for a top ten finish in the overall competition. However, a time penalty for a service delay ultimately placed him 20th in the final results.
Before the Tuuri event, Latvala’s workshop has been busy.
“We’ve been working on the car to get it ready for racing. I was supposed to have another car ready, but it didn’t quite make it for this event.”
“I promise to really push hard,” Latvala anticipates with excitement.
SM Tuuri Ralli kicks off on Friday evening with two special stages. Saturday’s schedule includes a total of five special stages.
