Roope Korhonen claimed an impressive win in the Hungarian ERC (European Rally Championship) round, which concluded on Sunday. The top spot was secured after a fierce battle, as Italian driver Andrea Mabellini was still in contention for the win going into Sunday afternoon’s loop. However, Mabellini suffered a puncture on the first stage of the afternoon and was ultimately forced to retire due to suspension failure on the penultimate special stage.
“Feels amazing I have to say. This last one was really rough. Thank you to my sponsors! Also one important thing; Happy mothers’ day! It felt quite a long stage, but we managed,” Korhonen said.
Korhonen’s victory margin was ultimately 30.1 seconds ahead of Norwegian veteran Mads Østberg. The former WRC star had a tight battle for second place, as Poland’s Miko Marczyk finished third just 1.3 seconds behind.
Østberg last stood on the ERC podium in Hungary at the end of the 2023 season, when he claimed victory in that year’s event.
“Very pleased to be honest. It’s been many tough rallies, I was on the edge of retiring last year. First rally this year was full of trouble. We had the pace to fight at the top. I have a lot of experience in these situations and try to stay relaxed,” Østberg told.
Swedish driver Isak Reiersen finished fourth, followed by Hungary’s Gábor Németh and Romania’s Norbert Maior.
The ERC season continues with the Swedish round at the end of May.
Results – Rally Hungary (ERC):
| POS. | Driver | Car | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Roope Korhonen | Toyota | 1:50:30.7 |
| 2. | Mads Østberg | Citroen | +30.1 |
| 3. | Mikolaj Marczyk | Skoda | +31.4 |
| 4. | Isak Reiersen | Skoda | +2:41.5 |
| 5. | Gábor Németh | Skoda | +5:17.6 |
| 6. | Norbert Maior | Citroen | +5:21.9 |
