Despite the challenges, Rovanperä moved up to second place at the end of Saturday after Ott Tänak encountered problems. The Finn now trails rally leader and teammate Sébastien Ogier by 27.6 seconds.
All weekend, Rovanperä has repeatedly noted that he’s been lacking the right feeling behind the wheel. Still, given the circumstances, his current result can be considered more than respectable.
“It’s felt pretty much the same as before. It’s going okay, but it’s really difficult. Especially the second loop today – it’s been quite tough. It’s been slippery all the time, and I haven’t been able to find a proper rhythm,” Rovanperä said at the end of the day.
Rovanperä spent much of Saturday battling his good friend Takamoto Katsuta. And just as that fight eased up, a new one began – against Tänak, who had dropped behind due to a technical issue after leading much of the rally. Rovanperä’s day was one long battle.
“Looks like it! Luckily Tänak dropped behind again on that long stage, so we get one place better on the road for tomorrow,” Rovanperä sighed.
He predicted, however, that the fight with Tänak would be especially difficult on Sunday. The Estonian has been the fastest driver of the weekend.
“Tänak has been really fast all weekend,” Rovanperä admitted.
“He was going really fast all day, so it might be very hard to match his pace tomorrow. He’s been the quickest guy today – but of course we’ll try,” he added candidly.
The improved road position for Sunday came as a welcome surprise.
“Of course it makes a difference. We’ll see tomorrow whether I can take advantage of it somehow,” Rovanperä reflected.
Rovanperä’s battle with Katsuta came to a head on the final stage of the day. This time, the Japanese driver edged ahead – just barely, but enough.
“He’s a little too fast, that guy! But yeah, it was fun to fight with him today,” Rovanperä said with a smile.
On Sunday, six more stages remain in Rally Portugal. Rovanperä is expecting a difficult challenge.
“Grip is really low, and overall, it’ll be a big test. I don’t think any of us want to have a bad day tomorrow,” the Finnish world champion predicted.
