Kalle Rovanpera

1. 1. Who is Kalle Rovanperä?

Kalle Rovanperä is a Finnish pilot. He was born on October 1, 2000 in Jyväskylä. He is currently a Toyota driver in the WRC.

2. Kalle Rovanperä junior course

Kalle Rovanperä began his career in 2015 at the age of 14 in Latvia where a driving license is not required to participate in rallies. The Finn made a strong impression by winning the R2 category of the Latvian championship with Citroen C2R2 Max.

The following year, he continued his apprenticeship in Latvia where he was once again crowned, becoming, at 16, the youngest national champion of all countries. He finished 2016 with four victories and three 2nd places in eight rallies.

Very promising, the young Kalle Rovanperä discovered the world rally championship in 2017 aboard a Ford Fiesta R5 with which he competed in the Great Britain and Australian Rallies in the WRC2 category.

It was in 2019 that his career took a turning point. Definitively entered in WRC2, the Finn won the title at the end of the year after a high-flying season with ten podiums including five successes in eleven events. Services which open the doors to the premier category with Toyota.

3. 3. Kalle Rovanperä’s WRC journey

Not impressed by the age gap or lack of experience, Kalle Rovanperä made an excellent debut among the big boys. After a fine 5th place at the Monte-Carlo Rally in January 2020 for his first, the Finn scored his first WRC podium at the following round in Sweden. He finished the season with four new Top 5 finishes and only one retirement, and an honorable 5th place in the drivers' standings.

In 2021, Kalle Rovanperä makes WRC history by becoming the youngest driver to lead the championship at 20 years and 150 days thanks to his 2nd place at the Arctic Rally, the second meeting of the season. Very promising, the Scandinavian won his first victory in the premier category during the Estonian Rally in July.

The start of a great series for him since he finished on the podium in the following round in Belgium before continuing with a second success in Greece. Results which allow him to grab 2th place in the championship behind the heavyweights Sébastien Ogier, Thierry Neuville and Elfyn Evans.

The youngest winner in the history of the world championship at 20 years, 9 months and 17 days thanks to his victory in Estonia in 2021, Kalle Rovanperä launched his career in earnest in 2022. The retirement of Sébastien Ogier allowed the Finn to establish itself as the new benchmark.

This year, the son of Harri Rovanperä (former WRC driver and winner of the Swedish Rally in a Peugeot 206 WRC in 2021), accumulates success rally after rally since he won the Swedish Rally, the Croatian Rally and the Rally of Portugal. Only two events escaped him, the Monte-Carlo Rally and the Sardinia Rally. The departure of Sébastien Ogier and his maturation leave the way clear for the young man to try to become world champion for the very first time in 2022.

4. AUTOhebdo’s opinion

Kalle Rovanperä represents the future of the WRC World Rally Championship. The full-time absence of the two world champions Sébastien Loeb and Sébastien Ogier then the difficulties of the former Thierry Neuville, Ott Tänak and Elfyn Evans to get up to speed allowed the Toyota driver to establish himself as the strong man of the WRC. A strong leader, the son of Harri Rovanperä is well on his way to becoming a regular world champion.