WRC
What does it take to tame Rally Sweden?
It just so happens that Esapekka Lappi’s FIA World Rally Championship comeback begins at the scene of his most recent victory – Rally Sweden.
The Finn was a popular winner in 2024, delivering a measured drive to claim the second victory of his WRC career alongside then co-driver Janne Ferme, as Hyundai made a stunning start to the season. When it comes to conquering Sweden’s ultra-fast snow stages, Lappi is well placed to share the secrets to success in this winter wonderland.
“It requires commitment in every condition that you might face, mostly sudden grip level changes,” says Lappi.
“As a Finn, it’s not the most challenging rally personally, but the really high speeds, plus limited grip and contrast on and off the line, make it a huge challenge. It can all go wrong so easily at those speeds, even if you only make a very tiny mistake.”
Looking back to his 2024 triumph, Lappi moved into the rally lead on Friday night, climbing to the top of the leaderboard after stage seven. Once in front, he never looked back and could afford to ease his pace on the final day, eventually winning by 29.6sec from Toyota’s Elfyn Evans. But it was his ability to handle heavy snowfall that Lappi believes proved decisive.
“We handled very difficult conditions well on the Friday night, with heavy snowfall in the dark meaning limited visibility. Driving at minus 23 degrees centigrade was very challenging for me, so it was more than important to get that kind of result.”
Returning to the present, Lappi admits his comeback to Rally Sweden – and to the WRC in general – came as a surprise after receiving a call to rejoin Hyundai Motorsport and share the team’s third car with Dani Sordo and Hayden Paddon this season.
Lappi claimed a popular victory in 2024
© Hyundai
“I thought my WRC career was over, so I'm very surprised and excited to drive at the top level again with Hyundai Motorsport. My results in some of my most recent WRC events haven't been very successful, so I'm aiming to change that this year and show commitment under every condition that I face,” said Lappi, who returns with a new co-driver in Enni Mälkönen.
“Rally Sweden is the fourth Rally1 outing for Enni, but our first together in a top-tier manufacturer entry. It’s a massive thing for her and it brings me a lot of joy to be able to offer her this kind of opportunity. I’m sure she will smile the whole week there.”
Lappi and Mälkönen will start ninth on the road, which could prove advantageous if fresh snow falls.
“If there’s fresh snow, it is a big benefit to start further back because the tyre line is getting ploughed away after each car, meaning the grip improves,” Lappi explained.
“If there’s no fresh snow, only ice, then it might get slower for the cars behind as the first cars are ripping off snow and ice from the ground. On loose sections the grip is worse, and if there’s gravel, the tyres will wear a lot more than for the cars in front.”
