Portugal, Finland…when the WRC veterans have fun

Barely recovered from surgery, Kris Meeke was imperious in the Rali Serras de Fafe. The 38^e edition that marked the opening of the Portuguese championship took place in very difficult conditions, with heavy rain turning the roads into quagmires. During the 11 special stages contested (113,13 km timed), the driver from Northern Ireland did not make any eliminatory mistakes. Discovering the Yaris Rally2 of the Toyota Gazoo Racing Caetano Portugal, the former Citroën Racing driver (2013 to 2018) took the lead from SS1 and only gave it up on the 5th^e sector. Then, despite the torrential rain, he imposed himself without having to force too much against Dani Sordo who should be his only rival this year. The locals actually appeared harmless compared to the speed of the foreign competitors. Armindo Araujo (Fabia RS) finished 3^e, but 1'38'' behind the leader. Ricardo Teodosio is 4^e almost 3'. Starting his programme in this country, Sordo took some time before getting to the front. These conditions were really not ideal for his mount and the Spaniard preferred to secure important points. The biggest animator of this race was finally Martins Sesks. Lined up to learn the special stages around Fafe in view of the WRC (15-18 May), the Latvian had a great time. With the Fiesta of the Past Racing team, he jostled Meeke, even taking the lead in SS5 before a power steering problem forced him to retire. If he shows a similar commitment with the Puma in a few weeks, the 25-year-old driver will be interesting to follow. The next meeting in this competition will take place in the Algarve (27-29 March). During the rally From Fafe, a test also took place further north in Europe where another former WRC driver won.

Lappi flies again

As in Portugal, the Savonlinna Ralli poster was enticing, but here too only one crew ruled the roost. Partnered with Enni Mälkönen, who was able to bounce back after being pushed aside by Sami Pajari, Esapekka Lappi sometimes took big risks to keep the first place occupied from SS1. After 6 SS (1 cancelled) and 104,30 km, the 34-year-old driver won, which had not happened to him in his country since his WRC victory at the 2017 Rally Finland. On terrain where the snow tended to melt, requiring constant changes in grip, the former Hyundai had to be wary of the young Tuukka Kauppinen who came back to just 4''4 after SS3 before crashing in the powder in the next one. The hopeful was finally forced to abandon after another exit in the final section. It was also in this 7 km SS23,61 that Jari-Matti Latvala lived up to his reputation. Discreet until then, the Toyota Gazoo Racing director gained 2 places by overtaking Yuki Yamamoto and Teemu Asunmaa. In the ranking, note the victory in SM4 class of Roope Hirvonen (19 years old) on his Fiesta 1,6 that he shares with Mikko his father.

Esapekka Lappi was able to dominate the 2nd round of the Finnish championship (Photo Taneli Niinimaki for AKK)