The short spectator-friendly stage is known for the fact that it doesn’t offer much to gain but has a lot to lose.
Hyundai’s Esapekka Lappi was 3.1 seconds behind his teammate Thierry Neuville’s fastest time on Harju, placing seventh.
Lappi had a dramatic moment on the second run of Harju, but fortunately, the Finn managed to get through it unscathed. It could have ended much worse.
“Did it hit something? I didn’t feel anything inside the car. Then it probably did hit,” Lappi quipped.
“It doesn’t matter at all. I didn’t intend to drive that deep into it. In the recce car, I drove from that embankment, and there were no stones or anything. It’s quite a round corner, so you can go in with speed. There was some dirt or something, and the grip disappeared all of a sudden, Lappi recounted.
Harju is important for the spectators, and there was a large crowd present again this year despite the rainy weather. However, Lappi doesn’t like Harju.
“Competitively and according to my own preferences, this is not a good start to the rally, but for the spectators, it definitely is,” Lappi said.
The rally really gets underway on Friday morning. The long day of driving offers as many as nine special stages.
“We’ll look at a few stages in the room this evening and then close our eyes. Then we’ll start driving in the morning,” Lappi planned.
