Kalle Rovanperä in a dangerous situation in Rovaniemi – sends stern message to spectators

Toyota's Kalle Rovanperä is taking part in the Arctic Lapland Rally, held in Rovaniemi this weekend.
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Rovanperä’s day started dramatically when he went off the road on the very first stage. He had to swerve to avoid a spectator who was standing near the track.

“There was indeed a spectator up against the snowbank. At first, from the straight, I thought the spectator was on the bank, but when we arrived at the corner, it became clear that he was actually right on the road, leaning against the bank. I had to swerve, and we went off,” Rovanperä recounted the dramatic moment to Rallyjournal.com.

Rovanperä wanted to send a firm message to rally spectators.

“Think about your own safety! If I saw a rally car coming towards me, I would definitely jump over the bank. He saw us and was watching us the whole time. I don’t know what was going through his mind,” Rovanperä stated firmly.

The situation was extremely dangerous for the spectator.

“The normal racing line would have meant the bumper would have brushed against the snowbank, and we would have hit the guy directly. His legs would have been in bad shape. Luckily, we managed to swerve, and nothing happened. That was pure luck,” Rovanperä said.

Despite the dangerous incident, Rovanperä was satisfied with his day.

“A pretty good day. There were many different conditions, and we got to test a lot of different things. That’s always a good thing,” Rovanperä commented.

Rovanperä travelled to Rovaniemi with only one goal in mind: to test the new snow tyre from Hankook, the new tyre supplier for the World Rally Championship.

“There’s a really big difference compared to before. It’s clear in which conditions it struggles a bit more. The difference is huge, and a lot of work needs to be done with the car to get it to perform well,” Rovanperä observed.

He also noted that compared to Pirelli’s winter tyres, the new tyre is much slower and more sensitive to loose snow.

On Saturday, the final day of the rally in Rovaniemi, there are still seven special stages to be run. Rovanperä’s plan for the final day is clear.

“We’ll just continue in the same way and try to figure out new things to test,” Rovanperä said.

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