Tänak met his fate on the Saarikas special stage, which had not been previously used in the Rally Finland. Tänak took a corner too wide, causing his Hyundai to slide into a ditch. The car began to roll and eventually crashed heavily into a birch tree, bottom first.
Footage of Tänak’s crash has been released on social media.
— Jori Järvinen (@JorstiKarvonen) August 2, 2024
If the embed above is not visible, you can watch the video here.
The special stage was halted after Tänak’s accident, and an ambulance was called to the scene. Hyundai later reported that Tänak was uninjured, but his co-driver Martin Järveoja was taken to hospital for further examination.
Hyundai will provide an update on Järveoja’s condition later.
The Saarikas special stage was eventually resumed, with Toyota’s Kalle Rovanperä setting the fastest time. Rovanperä leads the competition by 0.8 seconds over his teammate Elfyn Evans after three special stages.
The Saarikas stage was later completely cancelled as a spectator along the route suffered a medical emergency.
