Rovanperä’s lead is exactly eight seconds ahead of his teammate Elfyn Evans. The two-time world champion wasn’t entirely satisfied with his pace on Friday, despite setting several fastest times.
“It’s been a difficult day, especially because of the weather. The conditions have varied a lot. I’m happy that the day was clean. I’m not completely satisfied with the pace. Tomorrow at least, the starting positions will be even against those we’re competing with. The teammates are driving fast, so I have to push hard as well,” Rovanperä summarised.
Behind Evans, Sébastien Ogier completes Toyota’s top-three lockout, just six-tenths of a second behind Evans. The duo was already looking forward to Saturday’s stages, including the legendary Ouninpohja, which will be run twice.
“The day has gone quite well. The conditions have been challenging, and there have been some moments. It’s nice that we made it to the finish. Tomorrow is a new day with great stages ahead,” Evans said.
“Tomorrow is going to be a big day. I’m already looking forward to it. I think our performance has been good. We lost some time to Kalle in the afternoon, but that was probably expected. It’s still great that we’re in the podium fight,” Ogier summarised.
In fourth place is Hyundai’s Thierry Neuville, who is 25.5 seconds behind Rovanperä. It was a tough day for Hyundai, with both Ott Tänak and Esapekka Lappi retiring due to crashes.
In fifth place is M-Sport Ford’s Adrien Fourmaux, followed by Toyota’s Rally1 debutant Sami Pajari and his teammate Gregoire Munster.
“I don’t know where to start. There were some incredible things, but also some not-so-great moments,” commented Pajari, who set his first fastest time but also faced problems in the morning.
In the WRC2 class, Oliver Solberg, driving a Skoda, leads and is impressively eighth overall.
The Rally Finland continues on Saturday with six special stages. The competition concludes on Sunday.
Rally Finland Standings after SS10/20:
| POS. | Driver | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Kalle Rovanperä | Toyota | 58:24.7 |
| 2. | Elfyn Evans | Toyota | +8.0 |
| 3. | Sebastien Ogier | Toyota | +8.6 |
| 4. | Thierry Neuville | Hyundai | +25.5 |
| 5. | Adrien Fourmaux | Ford | +48.5 |
| 6. | Sami Pajari | Toyota | +1:31.0 |
| 7. | Gregoire Munster | Ford | +1:52.7 |
| 8. | Oliver Solberg | Skoda | +3:22.0 |
Rally Finland Itinerary:
Thursday 1.8. 09.01 Shakedown: Ruuhimäki (4.12 km) 18.05 SS1: Harju 1 (3.48 km) Friday 2.8. 07.13 SS2: Laukaa 1 (17.96 km) 08.20 SS3: Saarikas 1 (15.93 km) 09.35 SS4: Myhinpää 1 (15.51 km) 11.05 SS5: Ruuhimäki 1 (7.76 km) 14.10 SS6: Laukaa 2 (17.96 km) 15.17 SS7: Saarikas 2 (15.93 km) 16.32 SS8: Myhinpää 2 (15.51 km) 18.05 SS9: Ruuhimäki 2 (7.76 km) 19.05 SS10: Harju 2 (2.01 km) Saturday 3.8. 08.05 SS11: Västilä 1 (18.94 km) 09.05 SS12: Päijälä 1 (20.19 km) 10.05 SS13: Ouninpohja 1 (32.98 km) 14.35 SS14: Västilä 2 (18.94 km) 15.35 SS15: Päijälä 2 (20.19 km) 16.35 SS16: Ouninpohja 2 (32.98 km) Sunday 4.8. 07.55 SS17: Sahloinen-Moksi 1 (14.27 km) 09.05 SS18: Laajavuori 1 (4.35 km) 10.17 SS19: Sahloinen-Moksi 2 (24.27 km) 12.15 SS20: Laajavuori 2 (8.77 km)* Power Stage
