Rovanperä was 0.6 seconds faster than Hyundai’s Ott Tänak, who is driving with all his might for Super Sunday points. Overall, Rovanperä’s lead is now 20.6 seconds ahead of his teammate Elfyn Evans.
“In this condition we can feel good. There is a solid line but a little layer loose on top of everywhere. I did a good stage, but many places it wasn’t perfect,” Tänak explained.
“It’s quite enjoyable on the second pass. I think we are in trouble with the soft tyres, luckily the last one is not long but the hards would be better on this loop. The Super Sunday gap is too big, the Power Stage is in rough condition and Ott will be taking all the risks there and I wouldn’t want to take them,” Rovanperä said.
M-Sport Ford’s Adrien Fourmaux continues in third place overall. The Frenchman is 40.6 seconds behind the leader. Hyundai’s Thierry Neuville is in fourth place.
Hyundai’s Andreas Mikkelsen, who was in second place on Saturday, suffered a puncture in the morning and has since eased off the throttle. The Norwegian has only been cruising through the stages and has already dropped to sixth place, behind Latvia’s Martins Sesks. It doesn’t make sense for Mikkelsen to attack anymore after the puncture, as teammates Neuville and Tänak need the Super Sunday points more.
In the Super Sunday points, Tänak is narrowly in the lead before the final stage. The gap to Rovanperä is 2.6 seconds. Fourmaux is third in Sunday’s results, ahead of Evans and Neuville. Rovanperä still has a slim chance to secure full points in Poland if he wins the Power Stage and overtakes Tänak in Sunday’s results.
In the WRC2 class, Sami Pajari continues to lead. Pajari has controlled the rally impressively and leads his class by 26 seconds ahead of Oliver Solberg.
There is still one more special stage to be driven on Sunday in the Rally Poland.
Rally Poland standings after SS18/19:
| POS | Driver | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Kalle Rovanperä | Toyota | 2:27:36.6 |
| 2. | Elfyn Evans | Toyota | +20.6 |
| 3. | Adrien Fourmaux | Ford | +40.6 |
| 4. | Thierry Neuville | Hyundai | +1:14.2 |
| 5. | Martins Sesks | Ford | +1:35.7 |
| 6. | Andreas Mikkelsen | Hyundai | +1:59.9 |
| 7. | Gregoire Munster | Ford | +2:13.2 |
| 8. | Takamoto Katsuta | Toyota | +2:23.7 |
| 9. | Sami Pajari | Toyota | +7:18.3 |
| 10. | Oliver Solberg | Skoda | +7:44.3 |
Super sunday standings after 18/19
| POS | Driver | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Ott Tänak | Hyundai | 26:49.9 |
| 2. | Kalle Rovanperä | Toyota | +2.7 |
| 3. | Adrien Fourmaux | Ford | +6.3 |
| 4. | Elfyn Evans | Toyota | +7.2 |
| 5. | Thierry Neuville | Hyundai | +18.6 |
| 6. | Martins Sesks | Ford | +40.2 |
| 7. | Takamoto Katsuta | Toyota | +44.5 |
Rally Poland Itinerary (CET):
Thursday 27.6. 10:01 Shakedown: Lubiewo (5.10 km) 19:05 SS1: Mikołajki Arena 1 (2.50 km) Friday 28.6. 08:45 SS2: Stańczyki 1 (29.40 km) 10:20 SS3: Wieliczki 1 (12.90 km) *CANCELLED 11:10 SS4: Olecko 1 (13.20 km) 14:05 SS5: Stańczyki 2 (29.40 km) 15:40 SS6: Wieliczki 2 (12.90 km) 16:30 SS7: Olecko 2 (13.20 km) 19:00 SS8: Mikołajki Arena 2 (2.50 km) Saturday 29.6. 08:30 SS9: Świętajno 1 (18.50 km) 09:45 SS10: Gołdap 1 (19.90 km) 10:35 SS11: Czarne 1 (22.40 km) 13:25 SS12: Mikołajki Arena 3 (2.50 km) 16:00 SS13: Świętajno 2 (18.50 km) 17:15 SS14: Gołdap 2 (19.90 km) 18:05 SS15: Czarne 2 (22.40 km) Sunday 30.6. 09:00 SS16: Gmina Mrągowo 1 (20.80 km) 10:05 SS17: Mikołajki 1 (10.73 km) 12:20 SS18: Gmina Mrągowo 2 (20.80 km) 14:15 SS19: Mikołajki 2 (10.73 km) *Power Stage
