Hailing from Alavus, Asunmaa secured the win in a spectacular fashion, finishing 51.7 seconds ahead of Niclas Grönholm, who achieved his second podium in the SM series. This event was a jackpot for Skoda Motorsport Finland as both Asunmaa and Grönholm, better known from the World Rallycross series, represented the Czech brand in Turku.
Skoda didn’t have its own team in the SM series during the winter season, but for the summer, Asunmaa and Grönholm will represent the brand in every rally. Despite suffering a tyre puncture, Grönholm couldn’t match Asunmaa’s speed.
“The gap became quite big in the morning. It’s not easy to drive and maintain rhythm. You still need to drive to avoid learning to drive too slowly. I don’t like this. Of course, it’s great to win here for the second consecutive time,” said Asunmaa.
“Lots happened, and others had issues too. Probably Teemu was the only one who didn’t have any problems. My driving has improved compared to last year. Still needs some small tweaks. The pacenotes could be even more precise. The car is good, just need to push it properly,” Grönholm commented.
In the SM2 class, Henri Hokkala took the victory, finishing 27 seconds ahead of Jesse Kallio.
“Unless Jesse has a sudden surge, this should be enough. We had a good day. I gathered myself after a poorer performance yesterday. We’re on a clean streak. That’s quite something,” celebrated Hokkala after claiming his fourth class win of the season.
The Länsirannikko rally also saw participation from Estonian series drivers. The best among them in the overall competition was veteran Urmo Aava, who finished third in an N-group Subaru, just under a minute and a half behind Asunmaa. Aava, now primarily involved in Estonian rally leadership roles, showed that a true driver remains sharp even in an older car.
“Incredible. I never expected this. I hoped to be in the top ten and maybe lead the Estonian series. It would be nice to race here again,” Aava reflected.
Young Patrick Enok also had an impressive run in the Rally3 class with his Ford, finishing fourth overall and beating domestic class leader Henri Hokkala by 26.4 seconds. Enok’s performance was particularly remarkable given his age of 18.
Länsirannikon SM-rallin lopputulokset:
| POS | Driver | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Teemu Asunmaa | Skoda | 43:03.5 |
| 2. | Niclas Grönholm | Skoda | +51.7 |
| 3. | Urmo Aava | Subaru | +1:27.2 |
| 4. | Patrick Enok | Ford | +1:45.3 |
| 5. | Henri Hokkala | Ford | +2:11.7 |
| 6. | Anssi Rytkönen | Skoda | +2:12.4 |
| 7. | Emils Blums | Mitsubishi | +2:34.6 |
| 8. | Tommi Jylhä | Skoda | +2:38.7 |
| 9. | Jesse Kallio | Ford | +2:29.9 |
