Secto Rally Finland - August 1-4 2024 FIA World Rally Championship round 9 of 13
The FIA World Rally Championship’s summer of speed concludes with the fastest event of them all from August 1-4 when Secto Rally Finland hosts round nine of the 2024 season.
A mainstay of the WRC since its formation in 1973, Rally Finland stands as one of the championship’s most iconic events, its fast-paced gravel stages generously coated with jumps and crests that create an exciting challenge for the drivers and a stunning spectacle for the fans.
Rally Finland’s 73rd edition features two notable firsts, namely the introduction of the Virtual Chicane regulation and a Rally1 debut for Sami Pajari.
The 22-year-old from Finland follows Mārtiṇš Sesks as the latest young talent to be handed the opportunity to showcase his skills at the WRC’s top level following the Latvian’s stunning performance at Tet Rally Latvia last week. Co-driven by Enni Mälkönen, Pajari will compete in a Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 for his step up from the Rally2-based FIA WRC2 category.
Along with FIA world champions past (Sébastien Ogier and Ott Tänak) and present (Kalle Rovanperä), Pajari is one of 10 drivers out of the 80-strong entry to be equipped with a headlining Rally1 Hybrid car.
Virtual chicane set for FIA WRC debut in Finland
Rally Finland will also be notable as the first WRC event to include a Virtual Chicane on its competitive route. Successfully trialled on the FIA European Rally Championship-counting Rally di Roma Capitale last season and tested by some of the crews at the Rally Latvia Shakedown, the Virtual Chicane regulation has been developed by the FIA Safety Department in full consultation with organisers and event officials.
To avoid the additional accident risk and potential damage that comes from the construction of a temporary chicane, including the potential risk to marshals in maintenance, organisers are still able to reduce speeds in a certain section of a stage by creating a 200-metre zone where crews must lower their speed to 60kph before accelerating away.
The point at which crews must reduce their speed is highlighted in the event road book, while their speed is monitored by the GPS tracking system managed by official timing and tracking provider SAS.
A green light on the in-car display panel indicates when a crew can accelerate to normal speed. The double-use Ouninpohja stage on Saturday’s second leg will feature the FIA WRC’s first Virtual Chicane.
Secto Rally Finland takes place with the top three in the provisional standings, Thierry Neuville, Ott Tänak and Elfyn Evans, covered by a mere 13 points. Hyundai, meanwhile, is one point ahead of Toyota in the current Manufacturers’ championship table. While it has yet to claim a victory so far in 2024, M-Sport Ford has celebrated three podium finishes.
The FIA WRC’s official tyre supplier Pirelli will equip all Rally1 cars competing on Rally Finland with its hard or soft compound Scorpion KX tyres. Warm and dry weather will require the use of the option hard compound tyre with the soft version designated the first-choice tyre and designed for use in cool and damp conditions. Teams running Rally1 cars can use a maximum of 28 tyres for the event including four for the Ruuhimäki Shakedown stage on the morning of Thursday 1 August.
SECTO RALLY FINLAND ROUTE IN SHORT
Described by Clerk of the Course Kai Tarkiainen as “one of the best ever”, the Secto Rally Finland route for 2024 consists of 20 special stages covering a competitive distance of 305.69 kilometres. Sixty-one per cent of the route has been altered in comparison to the 2023 edition, while 12 per cent of the timed distance has not been used since 1997.
Starting and finishing in Jyväskylä Harbour, situated within easy reach of the Paviljonki service park and the host city’s central area, the competitive action begins with the mixed-surface Harju stage on Thursday evening.
Leg one features nine stages covering 116.33 competitive kilometres, including the Saarikas run, which has never been used in the WRC before, and a return to Harju to round out a tough first day.
Two loops of three stages in the Jämsä region make up Saturday’s route with the legendary Ouninpoha stage, covering 32.98 fast-paced kilometres, one of the expected highlights.
Twin visits to Sahloinen-Moksi and Laajavuori form the Super Sunday route with the repeat of Laajavuori forming the event-deciding Wolf Power Stage from 13:15.
SECTO RALLY FINLAND DATA
Stage distance: 305.69 km
Total distance: 1372.56 km
Number of stages: 20
RALLY1 CONTENDERS
Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team
Thierry Neuville and Ott Tänak, currently first and second respectively in the provisional standings, head the Hyundai challenge. Finnish driver Esapekka Lappi pilots a third Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid for the Germany-based squad.
M-Sport Ford World Rally Team
The British outfit counts on emerging talents Adrien Fourmaux and Grégoire Munster to drive its pair of Ford Puma Rally1 Hybrids.
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
No fewer than five Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrids are entered for Rally Finland. Defending world champion Kalle Rovanperä, the winner of the last two events in Poland and Latvia, is joined by eight-time WRC title winner Sébastien Ogier, Elfyn Evans, the winner in Finland last season, Jyväskylä-based Takamoto Katsuta and Finn Sami Pajari. The 22-year-old is making his Rally1 debut on his home event following his graduation from FIA WRC2.
SUPPORTING CATEGORIES
A bulging line-up of 31 crews are set to start Secto Rally Finland in contention for FIA WRC2 points. Toksport WRT’s Oliver Solberg (Škoda Fabia RS Rally2), the category winner in Latvia, heads the list with several Finnish and Baltic-based drivers set to provide the Swede’s main opposition.
They include Finns Teemu Asunmaa (Škoda Fabia RS), Mikko Heikkilä (Toyota GR Yaris), Lauri Joona (Škoda Fabia RS), Roope Korhonen (Toyota GR Yaris), Emil Lindholm (Hyundai i20 N), Teemu Suninen (Hyundai i20 N) and Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT team principal Jari-Matti Latvala, who is competing in a Toyota GR Yaris Rally2.
Estonians Georg Linnamäe (Toyota GR Yaris) and Robert Virves (Škoda Fabia RS) finished first and second on their home round of the FIA ERC earlier this month and will also be in contention for FIA WRC2 success in Finland.
William Creighton (Ford Fiesta Mk II), the 2023 FIA Junior WRC champion, and his Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy team-mate, Josh McErlean (Toksport WRT 2 Škoda Fabia RS), are also among the leading seeds along with Gus Greensmith (Toksport WRT Škoda Fabia RS), the FIA WRC2 winner on Safari Rally Kenya.
Rally Finland marks the resumption of the FIA Junior WRC Championship season with organisers attracting a 17-car entry of Pirelli-equipped Ford Fiesta Rally3s run by M-Sport Poland. It includes RACB National Team’s Tom Rensonnet, Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy-supported Eamonn Kelly, Leevi Lassilla, the winner of the AKK Flying Finn Future Rally Star prize drive, plus last season’s FIA Junior ERC champion Norbert Maior.
The four FIA Rally Star drivers, Jose ‘Abito’ Caparó, Taylor Gill, Romet Jürgenson and Max Smart, are also in action. Jürgenson, from Estonia, tops the provisional standings after three rounds.
Mattéo Chatillon (Renault Clio Rally3) and Tristan Charpentier (Ford Fiesta Rally3) head the FIA WRC3 entry, while Mauro Miele is the leading WRC Masters’ Cup seed.
