Rovanperä secured his first victory in the Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux series in a dominant fashion. The two-time rally world champion stormed into the lead from pole position and never relinquished his top spot.
The Finnish star crossed the finish line with a lead of over five seconds ahead of Peter Meijer. Due to a five-second time penalty, the winning margin was ultimately reduced to just over six-tenths of a second, but the performance remained dominant. Rovanperä had to push hard towards the end to extend his lead sufficiently.
On Saturday, Meijer managed to defeat Rovanperä in Imola, but on Sunday, the Finn was the clear number one. Benjamin Paque finished third in Sunday’s race, ahead of Swedish driver Robin Knutsson. Also finishing in the top six were Dirk Schouten and Kobe Pauwels.
“This was a really good race for us. We made some small adjustments to the car and got up to speed better. I was able to focus on my own driving. A big thanks to the team. They have worked hard for this,” Rovanperä enthused in the circuit racing series’ YouTube broadcast.
“We have learned together. It wasn’t easy to extend the lead. I heard that I had to push even harder if I wanted to win. This was a great race from us.”
Rovanperä competed in his first circuit races in the Porsche Cup in June at the Zandvoort circuit. At that time, podium finishes were still a dream, but in Imola, the pace had improved significantly. The Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux series continues in Assen, the Netherlands, in early August, but Rovanperä will be competing in the Rally Finland at that time. In mid-September, Rovanperä will return to circuit racing at the Red Bull Ring in Austria.
Next up for Rovanperä are tests in Central Finland in preparation for the upcoming Rally Latvia. After the tests, the intense preparation for Rally Latvia, which takes place from July 18-21, will begin.
