WRC2
Suninen and Virves set the stage for Sunday WRC2 showdown in Finland
Teemu Suninen will lead WRC2 on his home rally into Sunday, but with Robert Virves just 3.1sec behind, the outcome remains far from certain.
Virves looked set to carry a comfortable advantage into the final day before encountering a tyre issue aboard his Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 on Saturday’s penultimate stage. The Estonian lost 25.6sec, allowing Suninen to move 0.6sec ahead with the fastest time.
Suninen added another stage victory aboard his Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 on the day’s final test, but with more than 60 competitive kilometres remaining on Sunday, his advantage remains slender.
Teemu Suninen took the WRC2 lead late on Saturday
© At World
Roope Korhonen had begun the day firmly in the fight for victory, but his challenge came to an abrupt end during the morning. The Finn slid wide at a right-hander and rolled his Yaris off the road, promoting compatriot Lauri Joona into the top three.
WRC Promoter-backed Patrick Enok started Saturday just 1.1sec outside a podium position but rolled his Škoda 3.1km into the opening test. Although he managed to reach the stage finish, the damage was too severe for him to continue.
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRC Challenge Programme driver Yuki Yamamoto had looked poised to move into fourth, but his day also ended on the morning loop when he went off 3.1km into SS13.
That promoted fellow Challenge Programme driver Jaspar Vaher into fourth, while M-Sport Ford duo Romet Jürgenson and Mille Johansson moved into fifth and sixth respectively.
Italian youngster Giovanni Trentin continued to impress during his learning season in WRC2, driving his Fabia neatly to hold seventh overnight. Léo Rossel followed in eighth on only his second WRC2 start aboard the Lancia Ypsilon Rally2 HF Integrale.
Japan’s Takumi Matsushita and France’s Mattéo Chatillon completed the top 10.
