WRC

Rovanperä and Evans a cut above the pack at Rally Estonia

Toyota Gazoo Racing drivers Kalle Rovanperä and Elfyn Evans left the Hyundais and Fords behind on this Saturday morning loop. Esapekka Lappi lost three places after a puncture.

Published on 16/07/2022 à 12:07

Medhi Casaurang

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Rovanperä and Evans a cut above the pack at Rally Estonia

Kalle Rovanperä (Toyota) leads the 2022 Rally Estonia. © Toyota

Le Rally of Estonia 2022 began its second stage this Saturday July 16 as it had finished its first stage. The World Rally Championship event (WRC) can be divided into two segments: the duel between Kalle Rovanperä (Toyota) and Elfyn Evans (Toyota) in the lead, and the rest of the peloton behind.

The championship leader took advantage of the morning loop to increase his lead to around twenty seconds. On terrain with variable grip depending on scattered showers, the two Toyota hybrids left the competition behind, starting with the Hyundai i20 NOtt Tänak, trailing almost a minute behind in third place.

The typical humor of Esapekka Lappi (Toyota) disappeared at the end of the 12th special stage of the 2022 Estonian Rally. The Finnish driver, who had been trying since this Saturday morning to preserve his fourth place against Thierry Neuville (Hyundai), lost more than 2'30'' and fell to seventh position in the general classification.

“When landing a jump, a rear tire went off-track, He explains. Then I had trouble activating the jack to replace the wheel. On this type of rally, if you have this type of problem, it's all over for you. »

The big beneficiary of this special is his teammate Takamoto Katsuta (Toyota). The Japanese does not gain one, but two positions thanks to a better pace thanAdrien fourmaux (M-Sport Ford), which remains anchored in the sixth slot.

Gus Greensmith (M-Sport Ford) also lost more than two minutes due to a puncture, allowing Frenchman Pierre-Louis Loubet (M-Sport Ford) to steal eighth position. Leader in the WRC2 category, Andreas Mikkelsen (Skoda) preserved a comfortable margin over Teemu suninen before the lunch break. Oliver Solberg (Hyundai) finally suffered an engine temperature alert due to an air inlet from the radiator blocked by grass.

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General classification Rally Estonia 2022 after SS13:

Medhi Casaurang

Passionate about the history of motorsport across all disciplines, I learned to read thanks to AUTOhebdo. At least that's what my parents tell everyone when they see my name inside!

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