71. Secto Rally Finland 2022
4. 8. – 7. 8. 2022, Jyväskylä • AKK Sports Ltd. • gravel 322.61 km - (cancelled 21.69 km) • total distance including road sections - 1427.47 km • Other years
Info
SS22
"The Toyota guys gave me some hope on Friday in the beginning and since then we saw our chance. We were pushing from there, but all I want to say in these difficult times is that it's really all down to my wife. She has been supporting me so much and I am really proud of here - I love her so much."
"Of course it was a nice weekend. I would have wanted to win at home of course but when you look at the situation I think we did pretty well after opening the road on Friday. We fought back and we are still quite close, so I think we can be proud of what we did."
"Not the best weekend - a bit up and down. Of course it was nice to be in the early fight but it got a bit frustrating after Saturday. It's like that - not the weekend we wanted but at least we are here."
"It was a tough weekend but we already knew it coming here. Like in Estonia, it's two rallies in a row with a similar profile where I have always struggled a bit. Now we are heading to Ypres and we will try to do a good job over there."
"It was a good rally. I made so many mistakes yesterday and unfortunately I couldn't catch Thierry, but I will try to improve. I am really hoping that our team-mates are doing well."
"It seemed to be better this morning for sure. I've really enjoyed it - the stages have been mega. I'm not sure what's wrong with Pierre but he seems to have had a problem."
"It was a tough weekend but we already knew it coming here. Like in Estonia, it's two rallies in a row with a similar profile where I have always struggled a bit. Now we are heading to Ypres and we will try to do a good job over there."
"Not the best weekend - a bit up and down. Of course it was nice to be in the early fight but it got a bit frustrating after Saturday. It's like that - not the weekend we wanted but at least we are here."
"Wow. That's nice! There was a rut [in the previous stage] and we hit it and immediately started to roll. I saw from the video that we went over three times. I don't know what to say - I am sorry to the team for breaking the car but it's good to be here."
"It seemed to be better this morning for sure. I've really enjoyed it - the stages have been mega. I'm not sure what's wrong with Pierre but he seems to have had a problem."
"It was a good rally. I made so many mistakes yesterday and unfortunately I couldn't catch Thierry, but I will try to improve. I am really hoping that our team-mates are doing well."
Mechanical on road section
"It's a nice feeling to finish the rally and with this car it's really amazing. It was not exactly what we wanted but I am really happy and I have to thank all my sponsors and the team."
"It's been quite frustrating on the first day. We can be happy with some interesting times and it's also been good for experience to open the road. It was not the rally we wanted but there are some positives."
"Can I swear?! It's been a tricky weekend. I've enjoyed the parts where we were on the road, but I am disappointed about what happened yesterday. I am trying to squeeze everything out of this car, like everybody else on the team, but the level here is so high and you have to be on your A game in every rally."
"It was a really good rally for us and we are feeling great. I think we have done a very good job of developing the car and now it's on the winning pace, so that's the most important thing."
"It was quite something. It seems like Friday was the day where we basically lost it. We need to think about that. I am not over the moon, but anyhow, second place after a proper fight is a good rally for us."
"The feeling is good. One goal was to make it through the whole rally without mistakes - we definitely achieved that. We also wanted to keep up with the frontrunners, but that needs a little bit of work for the future."
"I really enjoyed being back over here. We haven't quite hit the pace we wanted but I have loved every second of it. We've got lots more to come as a team but the car is in one piece, so we can put it on the plane next week and take it back home."
SS21
"It's been a good weekend. This one was quite stressful because it was so rough in the middle. We had a clean run."
"I think there is no chance to catch Ott. Like I said before, I can try to push one or two seconds faster with big risks, but that's it and it won't be enough."
Rolled
"Let's see. The next one is a great stage and we'll just try to give it our best shot."
"Let's go and see. If we can get three points from the Power Stage it would be a nice end to the rally, but if it's less it would be disappointing."
"The narrow road has some small ruts but it wasn't as bad as I expected. I tried a few things during this run and it wasn't so perfect."
"On the penultimate corner it really dug out and snapped the car to turn it into a field. We made it."
"It was very rutted - I was surprised. In the middle, I had a big compression and I was thinking I had a puncture on the front left. We want to finish and we need to be careful."
"It's not nice to drive like this. We are taking it easy and it's going quite okay but sometimes it surprises you."
"I just want to enjoy my day and my driving. For sure, there is a lot of sweeping so it's not really easy."
"It was a little bit cleaner and more enjoyable. In some parts I got completely out of the ruts and dropped time in the forest section, but apart from that it was okay."
SS20
"It was okay but nothing special really. We were just trying to get our eye in for the Power Stage - nothing crazy."
"There are a lot of junctions, so it's really no place to take a risk. You just need to be clean on the junctions and we did exactly that - it's all good."
"I can go quicker if I take the risks, but I am not willing to take it. It does not make any difference for me - if I take a crazy risk to be a few seconds faster then I can have the same time as Ott. It's not worth it."
"The car is a bit on the soft side to gain some grip. Maybe it looked scary but to be honest it was all under control. I am starting to get scared now that I am getting a bit older!"
"The grip was quite low in some of the braking areas so I was careful there, but we had a clean run through and we are happy with the pace notes for the second pass."
"I tried to find the rhythm and the feeling and maybe two corners in I went a bit too much. I'll try to push on the Power Stage and take some points from who is in front of me now."
"I don't know why this year, but the jumps earlier in the stage felt massive compared to last year. Last year they were all flat but this year I was almost jumping into the next one!"
"It's a fantastic stage - really something special. I lost a lot of time in the first stage so now I am trying to take it carefully. We are trying to go through now and finish this rally."
"It's a nice stage with this car but I can't really enjoy because I have to be really careful with my steering."
"We probably jumped a bit less with this car, but it will still a good jump! The plan is not to be the biggest but it was a nice stage and I had a good feeling."
"Nice. I enjoyed it - I bet the 0 cars so that's always a good sign!"
SS19
"It was a great stage, let's try to enjoy the last bits."
"We are mainly in major key today. Just driving through and checking places for the future as I think these
stages will be used again some day. We're also trying out some things."
"Enjoyed the stage, we're struggling a bit with some changes we did to the car. I was not expecting the result
of the changes. But it's OK, It's not every day that you're here in Finland so we enjoy it."
"It was OK. I'm trying to find the balance between pushing and staying out of trouble. Our rally ended here last
time so not too good memories from here."
"Oittila is a nice and fast stage. The gap was not big but in the wrong direction, though. Well, three more to go
now. Our run was OK, but I should have pushed a bit more from the beginning."
"Not bad. The road is great, really enjoyable to drive."
"That was definitely full gas! Happy to be here and that was much-needed this morning. We need to keep a good pace but it was a nice feeling."
"There is not much more I can do. We had a pretty clean stage and the small road is cleaning quite a lot. I tried to be fast but for sure it was not a perfect stage from me. I think Ott knows how to do it well."
"When I sat in the car in parc fermé I realised now I can see again! It's better like this."
"I'm not taking any chances. We're trying to keep the rhythm but we aren't doing anything crazy this morning."
"We had a clean run. It's very slippery in some places and there is a lot of cleaning as well."
"We changed something on the car last night and my engineer was pushing me to change it, and he did a great job. I wasn't sure about it but now the car feels great."
"No grip! I felt like I was stopped in most places, it was like we were not moving forward and not going anywhere. It must be the same for everybody."
"I don't know why, but I have no grip at all. It's really strange. I think the car is too stiff."
"It feels nice but the power steering is almost like yesterday in some places. Not good."
"The plan is just to enjoy and try things on the car. There is still a lot of cleaning to do, but it's nice to have at least one car in front."
"Very loose. Quite okay - obviously hesitant in a couple of places, but other than that it was good."
SS18
"I really enjoyed the afternoon stages. The grip in the afternoon was good. This last one was a bit tricky with
stones but we did OK.
"It has been fun! It's nice to be part of this. There has been incidents all right, and the steering wheel is a bit
skewed. We hit something on the previous stage. Now we'll head to service to have a look at it."
"It's better and better. This stage was so rough and I was very cautious. I just drove through - happy to be
here."
"It was a successful day. We gained more experience of rainy conditions. The rest of the day was OK even
though it was a bit rough. We managed without punctures or any major trouble. It was nice to get to drive
these nice stages also in dry conditions and it's great to see so many specators there. We will try to continue
the same way tomorrow."
"I think it's one of those jumps on the last two stages. We just landed flat on the belly. Anyway, I'm quite happy
with my day, it's all been progressive and learning the roads so I'm happy."
"A nice day, no problems, we had a lot of fun. Everything is OK."
"A good day but I didn't like this stage so much. We did some changes for the car and it's more stable so we
could enjoy even the rough parts. We enjoyed the day as a whole. A beautiful day!"
"We had difficulties in the rain this morning. The second loop was better. We are happy to be here because
that's not obvious in Finland."
"The sun was dazzling me at the beginning, but elsewhere it was not so bright. We have been just driving
through; nothing special."
"The morning went better but we had a puncture in the afternoon and after that we haven't been able to push."
"I think overall quite a good saturday for us. In the past the Saturday hasn't been very good for us so getting
through without any punctures was crucial for us."
"I have to say, Teemu has been really on it and maybe I'm not so confident with the car in these conditions, I
was better in the morning. I don't know, I'm quite happy with the day."
"In the morning we had some challenges. We managed them quite well. Overall a good day"
"It was something on the damper. It's a shame because I feel like I could have gone faster, but at the same time if we did it might not have held together."
"It was the worst. When the sun is very low then sometimes there is really no visibility. We were not brave enough to even clean the windscreen in case we broke it more, so it's also very dirty. It was a nightmare, but we are here."
"It's still a bit of a surprise where we are at the moment, but definitely it's been a good day considering the conditions that we had. We really thought we would lose a lot more and actually we are doing good."
"We lost quite a lot of time yesterday, but today we have been trying our best to catch it. It's not easy because the gaps are so small but the main thing is that we are at the end of the day. We have good points coming and tomorrow we have to finish the job."
"The rear just snapped at quite high speed. It was stupid, but nothing really to say."
"In general, the car was behaving much better today than yesterday. We have no reason to push and I know that in this rally I can't fight with the guys at the front. We are in a constant rhythm, driving through and still having fun."
"I enjoyed it. Gus is faster than me, so it's not so good to feel that but that's how it is. For me everything is fine, but I need a bit more commitment everywhere to try and catch a bit of time."
Damaged suspension from SS17
Spin
"The afternoon has been really enjoyable - I just need to improve my mornings. Maybe I need to have more coffee!"
"When you check the times it's not okay, but if you ignore the times then it's a nice feeling in the car."
"It was okay and a clean stage for us. We will see."
SS17
Suspension
"It was perfect for me - no worries. I had a good feeling in this stage and the car is working okay."
"t's surprisingly okay, but I can not see enough to put the car in the line on the junctions. It's the same with the crests - I am just guessing all the time."
"We felt a bit of an impact there at the end so we need to have a look."
"Not so confident. Ott is fast and there is a limit with these cars - I can not do much more. I was already a bit more sensible in this one because there is a lot of loose stones."
"It feels like we are touching the sump on the gravel a lot and it was very rough. It wasn't so comfortable driving here and it's very hard to find the right pace."
"We had another clean stage and I really enjoyed the last section. We are here with one more to go."
"Gus is doing very well. I was thinking my own driving was not so bad, so congrats to him - it's a good time."
"The last left-hander is not flat, but you can carry a hell of a lot of speed through there. I hooked it up and I could just see trees out of the windscreen and the road through the side window! It was fun."
"It was a really difficult stage for me because this morning I had no power steering, so it was like driving here for the first time."
"I was enjoying this stage but it's tricky with the lines. There is nothing I can really do, I am just enjoying and not pushing."
SS16
"Most amazing stages to drive on, even though it was a little bit rough, pure joy, a rollercoaster. We struggled
a bit on the rough stuff, the car is kicking around all over the place. Even though it's like that, we're here in
Finland what more can you ask for?"
"It was quite tricky trying to understand where the ruts have been forming and avoid any unecessary suprises
but I think it was ok."
"I think it's nice to do some parts of the legendary Ouninpohja so for sure it's really nice. The pace is quite OK
and I think that Emil and Teemu are pushing quite hard and so I'm happy with the time."
"It was a good stage for us. The grip is much higher than in the morning. It looks like we are not as strong in
these conditions, let's see if we can work something out."
"The pressure is high. We have a gap of 5 seconds and we are pushing flat out and can make only a few
tenths differences. We're pushing hard, it's interesting."
"I definitely will try to stay in front. I am not comfortable with the car, but I will keep pushing. I will fight."
"I am not in the mood to talk now. Sorry."
"I am struggling. I don't have the feeling I want in these drier conditions and the car is moving a lot. Not easy."
"At the moment, it's working in some places and some places it's not. We will see how it plays out when we do all the stages."
"A lot of bedrocks are coming up from the ground and I hit them many times. It's quite horrible to feel it but luckily we didn't have punctures."
"I think it was the first clean and smooth stage we've had all weekend. No big push, just consistent and the conditions were quite nice. I enjoyed it."
"In the forest, I hit a big rock in the line. It was a big impact and after that I was a bit careful, but nothing happened."
"That felt like a really good stage, but I missed my braking coming into a junction onto some Tarmac. It's disappointing because it felt really good until that."
"I think everything is okay. My driving in this stage was okay - not a full push but all good."
"It's really tricky with the rear because we don't have a good line in front of us. It's fun to drive, but in terms of the times it's difficult."
SS15
"It was very good. I'm happy, the grip was much better. This morning I was a bit more scared but these are
more like the roads that I can do at 62."
"We try to get through. The road is quite rough in some places. We made it although it was impossible to
avoid all the rocks."
"The narrow section was quite rough but the rest of it was OK. A really nice stage."
"We tried to speed it up not to be left behind and we really enjoyed. The small section is rough; some big
stones have appeared but nothing too crazy. We try to take the final loop so that we don't break the car or too
many tires."
"The road is completely destroyed and there are boulders. In the narrow section I packed off because there's
too much risk of a puncture. I still try to find the rhythm"
"It was quite rough in some places especially on the small final part but we managed to get to the end without
punctures."
"The feeling is good and this stage is beautiful with sunshine and the conditions are good, we enjoyed it a lot.
Rough in some places but that's always the way it is in Finland on the second loop."
"The last part was rough but all the rest was nice."
"There were one or two quite rough bumps and I feared we had a puncture. It wasn't really a spot-on run."
"I enjoyed it a lot but we struggle a lot with the car in the rough but it was a good run."
"It was OK. The narrow part was quite rough so it's good that we took two spares."
"It felt quite nice, but the others are still fast. The road was in a surprisingly rough condition, but that didn't play
a big role. Everything is OK."
"Lots of stones out there. The smaller road was very rough on the tyres, car and us, but we came through
without damages. An OK run."
"It was a good stage. The grip is getting good and the road is in good condition."
"For the moment it's definitely enough. We need to continue the same rhythm."
"Under braking, the front end threw a rock up and it came back into the windscreen. It's straight in my view, so it's not lucky."
"Under braking, the front end threw a rock up and it came back into the windscreen. It's straight in my view, so it's not lucky."
"I had a big moment, but otherwise it was okay but really rough. It felt okay but really aggressive."
"The ruts are quite rough, so maybe it happened somewhere there. I had nothing special. It's tricky to be honest - we changed the car quite a bit and one area is better and the other one is not."
"I was a bit careful in the narrow sections to avoid punctures. I also had a big impact near the start but everything is okay."
"It's very rutted in there and quite destroyed in the last section. I didn't feel good at all, but we are here. It's easy to get a puncture or damage - we just drove cleanly through."
"It wasn't the cleanest drive - I didn't use the grip enough. It was possible to go a bit faster but it's fine."
"It was the best 9min 41.4sec of my life. I don't know what it is, but there's something about that stage. It's something else."
"I don't know [what it is] - it's something at the end of the stage."
"The grip is quite high, so it's nice to drive and enjoy. I had a nice feeling but for sure we are in the lines of the national cars, so it's quite tricky."
SS14
"I think the grip is better when it's a bit wet with these front wheel drives. The last three have gone really well,
as far as I'm concerned."
"We had some big issues and lost half an hour. We'll try to get to the service and let's see if we'll continue
from there or not. Technical problems."
"I'm still working on with the wet roads and different kinds of surfaces. I'm learning on the fly. Huge variance of
grip from one section to another but it's good, nice roads."
"Not too good this Saturday's loop. We had a half roll and we lost three minutes trying to get back again."
"You could leave the braking for later. There have been no technical problems."
"The day has come off nicely. I'm trying to find more confidence, let's enjoy and have fun. I'm getting quite
confident on the smaller roads but would like to be confident also on the bigger ones."
"The morning loop was good; I enjoyed it too much!"
"The first two stages were not so good but the last two were OK. We have to be careful to finish the rally."
"The conditions are good and we have done quite well. We had a puncture on the previous one and we were
lucky it wasn't anything serious. There are some stones in Patajoki."
"It was a bit tricky, in some places was grip and in others less."
"All kinds of issues. We haven't had a single clean run. In Rapsula we were in a ditch and then we spun, and
the car was restless. Let's see if we're going to continue."
"I'm starting to be more confident with the car and the pacenotes. It's getting better."
"A load of problems. In a junction on the previous stage we went just a little bit wide but the rear wheel hit a
rock and we lost our brakes. Let's hope we can continue."
"Quite OK, and the grip improved towards the last stages. We're thinking about new ways to stick us to the
road better. There might a lot of stones on the second pass."
"The morning loop was OK. It's nice to get back to the rhythm of yesterday. These guys are one day ahead of
us in terms of pace. It's getting better and better."
"It's good, fantastic stages. I'm enjoying a lot - happy to be here!"
"The morning loop was OK, but this last stage I didn't like much. We changed the setup for the car. Conditions
are strange - high grip although it's raining. It's not easy in this speed."
"The grip was very inconsistent. This was very tricky. I'm enjoying, I like the rally."
"The feeling is good. It has been a struggle the whole morning, and rain is not for us. We also had the same
problem with the note as Kalle in that place. There is still also a slight technical problem with the car. I hope
mother has prepared something nice for us at the service!"
"It was the same as the previous ones. I'm having some kind of a horrible mental lock. A few corners I'm doing
OK but then I'm struggling again. We have tried all kinds of tricks to improve. The feeling is high but then it
goes down when you see the result on the flipboard."
"[The rear bumper is hanging loose.] This thing flew at me! [Appears to be something from the dashboard.]"
"You have to be committed. Nice and flowing stages like all the Finland stages - they're good fun."
"There was a spectator walking on the road and that took us by surpise."
"Our VIP event was near the start - greetings to them! That maybe gave us some extra boost. The end was great and the feeling was good."
"I had a feeling it would be a good stage. Usually it's better for me to drive a new stage than one that's been
done before. I hope tomorrow will be exciting as well."
"It was a good stage for us. Nothing special. I like the battle, it's quite tight so I have to be on the limit all the time."
"It was a good stage with no real moments. I was in a very good rhythm and it was all we could do."
"We had some nice moments at least. It's not an easy stage - the grip is changing here and there. It all went well, but there were some slides."
"The issue is, you have to be 100 per cent everywhere and that wasn't quite the case. On the long blind corners at the end it's difficult to judge then limit and not go over it."
"It's a new stage, so you can always try to make something. We are lucky to be here - I had one note a bit too fast and I we were completely off the road. That's rally sometimes! We are here, so it's all good."
"It's a very tricky stage. The guys behind will be going much quicker because I was so careful. I am not happy at all with my driving, but the conditions are so tricky. It's better to stay on the road."
"It was an okay morning for us. We've had a clean run through so far. It is what it is - it's not a secret that we can not fight with the guys at the front anymore, and that's not our target either."
"I did a mistake in a long straight - I braked because I misheard a note. It's tricky."
"They were way too slow - especially at the end of the stage. I was hesitating a lot, so it wasn't very good."
"It's not nice to drive when you have this kind of issue. Sometimes it's working quite okay, but then other times it's stuck. You have to be really careful."
"It's a brand new stage for everybody but the grip is so inconsistent. It wasn't really easy but we are happy - it was a big challenge to open the road this morning with a lot of big stones out of the line."
SS13
"It was quite OK and maybe I should be more pleased. I'm not really aiming to win but I've come here to race,
though. If the rain stopped it would be better for us. I fixed the notes in a few places to be a bit faster."
"Getting closer. Some of these roads we haven't driven before so we're taking some caution there. It's looking
pretty good and the feeling is good."
"When we are trying flat out, it's pretty much equal splits. It was an OK stage for me, no issues."
"We are definitely trying. Let's see - we will keep trying."
"I didn't do such a big mistake like I did in the last one - I was really disappointed at the end of that one. This was a bit better."
"I couldn't really find the confidence needed to take that last bit of risk. I was maybe too careful on some of the notes as well in the first part. Just not full on it."
"Let's see how the other guys come. Not a good stage for me - I don't like it so much and there are some seconds I could take off."
"It's hard to find the confidence in the grip, so I am struggling. I didn't do this stage last year, but it should be okay now."
"All okay - I was just a bit surprised by the grip and I had to put the car sideways. It's much better now than this morning, but we have to try and keep Taka behind."
"It's okay. I was a bit careful here because I didn't do this one last year. The rally is still long and we need to stay on the road."
"It was pretty bad, but more because of the driver than anything else. I can't drive at the moment."
"Power steering. There is nothing we can do here, so I am just driving."
"We had heavy rain before the start. It was humid and damp, but there was no standing water and for sure it was a bit better. There's a lot of sweeping, but it's a good experience."
SS12
"It was quite difficult and the early part was very slippy. Then again, in some places I think we did OK. I saw
that Mikko was out but apparently they were OK."
"Not really a big push but quite tricky to read the conditions. It's not really a push, it's more of a survival game."
"This is what I've got. I'm doing my best and let's see how far we can get."
Accident
"We are trying our best. I don't know if it's struggling, but it's just difficult. The conditions are actually quite consistent but something else makes it inconsistent."
"It's not easy. It's very slippery and I made many mistakes. I thought I was early on this junction but no - it's too slippery!"
Hit a rock, damaged suspension
"I probably focused too much on being tidy and in the clean line. I could sort of sense it, but it's hard to know in conditions like that. In can go one of two ways."
"I just try to do the best I can. This was a cleaner stage than the one before, so hopefully the time is good. I don't mind the rain."
"It's very slippery - I don't know why we stalled the engine there under braking. It's not nice."
"I am not comfortable to be honest. The car set-up is better now, but I am missing the precision. I tried to drive fast and enjoy as well, but you can feel while you are driving that it's not enough."
"It was very, very difficult. There are some places at the end where you have no grip and I was aquaplaning in two or three places. It's very easy to go a mistake."
"I was aquaplaning absolutely everywhere and having massive snaps at 190kph! We were just about keeping it on the road."
"There was heavy rain, so it was difficult to see and also hard to keep the car on the road - even in the straight lines."
"It was really tricky. The only grip I could get was in the line of the recce but we started to have some standing water and I was aquaplaning a lot. At 180kph, the wipers don't go quick enough!"
Spin
SS11
"It's great to be here and to be able to drive. We hit the rock yesterday in SS3 and had to retire for the Friday."
"It was quite difficult for the first time.It was slippery. Time isn't as bad as I thought."
"What a great stage but tricky. That little road at the end is especially difficult. Some stones have appeared."
"It was really slippery but a great stage. Not much grip. Next time we'll be faster."
"It's quite difficult to judge the grip with this much rain - in some places it's actually quite good. We are back
again."
"We had some issue with the fuel pump yesterday. Now there's so much rain that I can't see. We are doing
the best we can."
"Conditions are quite difficult; hard to see, a fast stage. Heavy rain but the grip was good, not easy."
"Quite good, a lot of rain and quite slippery."
"It was tough. We are waiting for the next stages - we have three new to go. [Gear selection problems]"
"It was just shite. There's something wrong big time. Just driving through and marking stones."
"Surprisingly good grip considering the amount of rain. There was quite a shower at the beginning. I just
wasn't able to make use of it."
"Very tricky with the rain. The grip is changing a lot, very inconsistant. I can't trust the grip on this stage."
"Quite tricky. It was raining the whole stage and the grip was changing all the time. I'll try to get used to that so
let's see."
"Not bad. The grip was better than what I expected. I was a bit too cautious in fast places but I don't wan't to
take stupid risks."
"Timewise didn't go so well. I overtried. Really slippery."
"Saturday has started now.. A good and wild stage. That was really demanding but a clean run."
"Quite challenging, but OK conditions out there. Felt good."
"The conditions are not so difficult, but this thing is a nightmare to drive. We'll keep fighting."
"I don't know. I believe it's just down to lack of grip - it's quite slippery. We did what we could."
"It's a great stage and we had a pretty good run. Of course, there are always things you can do better, but it was all okay."
"Pretty okay. Not so easy conditions and I was not having the perfect pace all the time. Let's see how the others come."
"Let's see. I enjoyed it and had a nice rhythm. For sure, there was a bit of cleaning and maybe the rain was worse for the guys in front."
"It's quite okay grip and I was very careful because I did not know how slip it is. I have never been on this stage in a rally car - usually before this day I have crashed or retired! It was enjoyable."
"It's difficult again for me to drive. We had to change the diffs yesterday and I don't feel so comfortable, but we are going to work on it. It's like this."
"In a junction I got back on the throttle too early and I touched something. It's nothing."
"The best stage in the world didn't have very much grip! It was slippery but enjoyable, but for sure we were a long way from the limit in there."
"It's an amazing stage with this car. It's coming quite okay but I was not driving so good. We can improve."
"It's really nice to drive. In some places we have a lot of grip but in others it's like ice. We had a good feelign with the car."
SS10
"On the second stage I had a flat tire. The rim was damaged, so I had to change the tire and we lost about
four minutes. Other than that it's a fantastic experience to drive here again after 19 years."
"Something special, always crazy fast. The speed is incredible. Driving here is so different from all the other
rallies. I enjoy it, it's amazing"
"No big problem. In Lankamaa, there was some dust. It's been a really nice day, maybe the best ever. For the
first time, I can do what I want, it's nice to drive."
"Perfect day. We try to keep up the pace and maintain the same concentration for tomorrow. This is our debut."
"In the morning I found it so difficult to trust the pace notes. I didn't really have the confidence. You have to be
absolutely sure about the upcoming corners. Still I'm really enjoying this event. It's fun and good experience."
"I'm really happy with the day one. Sadly on the second stage we had a puncture. Tomorrow there will be a lot
of stages."
"A few changes were made to the car."
"It feels good after all. I think we lost some two seconds here, but there are still two days to go so it's nice to
be driving on here."
"I love the stages, it's magic even a bit rough, the feeling in the car is all right, I'm probably too cautious
especially as we have to get the car back on a boat to New Zealand soon. We'll push a bit more tomorrow."
"OK basic speed, but I made some mistakes on the previous one. I could have been faster here too."
"It feels like I am not able to drive this rally the way it should be driven. I'm really disappointed in myself since I
can't perform at my own level. I know who it is to blame.I've done something wrong, let's see if I can think of
something during the night. Others are going so far ahead."
"I just make sure that I'm coming through cleanly. Except for one mistake I would say it's OK but our goal was
to come through with no mistakes so we still have some work to do."
"It's been a good day, we've been pushing quite a lot and the other guys are giving some pressure. Tomorrow
is quite a tough day with long stages and big crests but mainly we'll continue like today."
"I knew the level would be high but it feels like we're really on the limit. you make a small mistake and you can
see it right in the stage time. It's been a good day without any issues, without any troubles. We lost a second
or two here and there but we'll see, there's a long way to go."
"It's been a difficult day, especially this morning. I had a really good stage in here but I am probably not enough in the lines of the others, so we need to understand that."
"It's super nice to feel the grip level and power from the car. It's a shame we had the problem and we couldn't really push."
"It's been a good day. I did my best and it wasn't easy. The times don't look so nice but we will continue to push and see what we can do."
"It's been a very good day indeed. The car has been amazing and the driving has also been really good. We improved our speed a bit in the afternoon and it's a nice fight for tomorrow."
"I wouldn't be so happy with fifth place. I am trying, honestly, and that was a good stage. I don't really know."
"It was a better afternoon. The stages are just incredible and it's a pleasure to drive them."
"In this stage I tried to go a bit faster, but then the mistakes start to come. It's been a tiring day and my battery is quite flat. Bed is waiting!"
"I had a big sideways moment and I pushed a button accidentally. We had no hybrid for a short section and it was a stupid mistake."
"I can't say I'm satisfied really. I haven't felt completely with it from the word go and we just haven't hit the mark. It got better this afternoon and hopefully we can carry that momentum into tomorrow."
"The second pass is a bit easier - you can be more confident and trust in the car. We are getting closer but we are still not there yet. We have to keep an eye on Katsuta and Breen tomorrow."
"I have to be quite happy. I think we pushed quite hard all the time and we could not do much more. This one was quite slippery again."
SS9
"The others are just driving faster. With my current driving skills, this was the best I could do here. We're trying
our best, though."
"Better than the first run. I try to avoid the rocks. The more we drive, the better."
"The early part was a total disaster. I almost lost control in a rut and for a while thought we're going to go off."
"We're just going nowhere. It's OK in places but the times are not there. My exits are not what they should be
and I'm hesitating at the braking points. The guilty one is sitting between the seat and steering wheel."
"I was testing a little bit of a different approach in my head. Trying to avoid the rocks that would cause a
problem, a puncture or other issues. It was working OK."
"I thought that now it's time to push a bit more. It won't be easy tomorrow, you have to make as much of a
difference now as you can."
"I think we made a bit of a gamble with the tyre choice but if the rain comes then maybe it's not ideal. We're
trying to manage, It's a long rally to go."
"I think I am having the same issue and I lost the power in some points."
"Everything is okay. We had a big impact with a rock on the chassis and I was quite worried that I damaged something. It's not a stage that I really like, but it's okay."
"I didn't feel like I had a very good run, so I'm a bit surprised at the time. It's okay."
"I made less mistakes and I drove better. I avoided the rocks to be fair, so I could have been even faster if I stayed on the line. We are driving very well at the moment."
"I didn't feel like I had a very good run, so I'm a bit surprised at the time. It's okay."
"They had a right good spot! I know what it takes to be fast here and I'm certainly trying everything I know. We've gone well here in the past but we're certainly missing something."
"I tried, but I made some really big mistakes and lost a lot of time. I carried a lot of speed a lot but in a tight corner I couldn't make it."
"The first loop was better. In this one it was a bit loose and softer than I expected and the car felt a bit lazy."
"It felt like a good stage to be honest. There's always one or two areas you can be quicker, but that's how it is."
"I had a good stage. I felt okay in the car and in the ruts I could push a bit harder, so it was easier."
"I tried. It was a bit more difficult than I was expecting with the lines of the small cars. In some corners I couldn't find a clean line and I lost a lot of time going wide on the loose gravel. It's like this.":
SS8
"This is one of the finest stages and it went OK. This was the first stage we were able to drive without any
issues. It's fun to continue from here, but we have to watch out for some new stones. Earlier on we had some
problems with the power steering but after the first round we discovered where the problem was, and now
everything is OK.
SS8"
"This went well. I've always liked this stage and it seems to fit me. It felt really good. Everything is working well
and the feeling and confidence of the car gets better."
"Not so good and on the previous one I was so slow. On this one I tried to push but still not enough. No
technical problems."
"It's good. We are trying to be in the rhythm. It's not easy but we enjoy a lot."
"It felt good. It's a fast stage and I found the feeling there. The others are fast too. The margins are narrow and
hard to evaluate when you are driving. There's still room for improvement on the second pass."
"The car feels a bit inconsistent but it's probably my preferred stage so far. Still some things to improve."
"The times are getting more where I like them to be. I tried to drive briskly and my hands are shaking now. I
remembered the places where you can really drive like crazy. Humbly driving forward."
"A bit tricky on the small road and I made a couple of mistakes there. Starting to find the rhythm now. It's nice
to drive these familiar roads."
"We lost the rear in one right hander. Luckily it went as it went but we have to keep going."
Could have been better, there was some marshals slowing us down. I don't know what was going on.
"Jari is in the middle of the road a few km from the finish. It wasn't an easy stage. We lost some seconds there
but what can you do. I was a little bit distracted by that."
"It's some fuel pressure problem. When I put the stage mode on, there's not enough fuel going to the engine so it keeps stopping. I don't know what to do."
"The rally is over for us, so now it's about trying to enjoy and gaining the experience."
Fuel pressure issue
"I was feeling like I did a good stage. It was not so bad but the time is not amazing. It's like that and we will contnue."
"My braking in the junctions was really good - I got some nice boost from that. It was a nice stage, a really nice stage."
"All okay - we were having fun in that one. Serious!
"She's not feeling perfect - we bent something in the previous one and we're just trying to manage it. That's a cracking time from Tänak."
"This stage seemed quite okay. It could be better, but it was an improvement on the last one. In Ässämäki I need to push a bit more, but the risk is if you get a puncture you can lose more time."
"In this stage things were feeling more comfortable and we had a good rhythm."
"There's a long way to go - of course we know it's close. I had a better feeling in here than I did in the previous one, but Kalle's clearly driving well."
"We had a good stage to be honest. I am driving at the speed I can at the moment. I am still not happy with the rear and I don't know how fast I can go without losing control. It's a fine line and I am not there yet."
"I've always liked this stage - it's a nice one. I was absolutely on the limit for the whole stage and being first on the road I can not do much more than that."
SS7
"The early part felt somehow difficult, and I think we lost some time there. We carried good speed on the
straights towards the end. It has been mainly OK, but I'd like to drive better. I guess I'll have to have a look in
the mirror."
"Too much on the side of cautions. The feeling is starting to be good. No problem, we need to be patient."
"Samu thought we did well but I'm not sure. I'm making some mistakes. It was bit slippy and some loose
gravel. Is that our time? [Lost 0.1 sec to the fastest one in his group.]"
"More or less the same as all of the stages today. A bit more slippery than the stages in Laukaa this morning .
I didn't know this from before. We haven't been racing for a while and the previous race didn't go so well.
Something is missing and we are trying to find out what it is."
"From the beginning we had some red lights on the dashboard and I couldn't see what is was at that speed. It
was distracting me."
"It was a clean run. Surprisingly slippy so I was careful in some places. A good stage."
"I was not feeling confident at he beginning of the stage but the rest was fine. I like these stages anyhow."
"It was a really nice stage but there were a lot of rocks. I hit one of them and I felt like I had a puncture, but I did not."
"There is not so much grip in this one and I had a moment on the first corner. I was lucky, but I lose a bit of time because I thought I had a puncture."
"It's not a battle. I am losing all the time! Ott is doing a good job."
"I had a huge impact with a rock on the line on a right corner through a dip. I need to go and look at it now - there's something not quite right."
"Not very good. It's still tricky in some corners because of the bedrocks and I was being too careful not to get a puncture. Everything is fine."
"Obviously I am taking risks. In some places I feel okay, but in others you get surprises and you feel like you are slow. I would say overall we had a clean run - that's all we can do at the moment."
"I knew at the end that it wasn't going to be a good run. The time is not a surprise."
"I felt like I had a puncture at one point so I took it a bit more steady, but I felt a bit more confident in the car."
"Of course, we will try to stay in the fight. This was a pretty good stage for me - I feel I left nothing in there. I don't know what else we could do - hopefully the time is okay."
SS6
"It has been an OK morning and I guess I should be happy. On this one I stalled a bit in a tight corner. If you
are not interested in getting a good result then it's better to join the spectators I guess!"
"We're in a steady pace for the moment, I feel I can push a bit more."
"We hit the chicane and that's where the scratches are from. It hasn't been a very good day, we can't push the
way we should."
"It was OK. We could spare the tires since the previous one was cancelled."
"I think we've been doing OK. I've really tried to push, but the margins are small at this pace. One stage at a
time. I'm hoping to have some kind of career in rallying."
"This one was OK as I don't have to rely on the aero here. I have to improve but let's see if that is possible on
this rally."
"We have had a problem with the steering since the beginning of the loop. It's really stiff and very tiring so Alex
was even driving on the road section to help me. We hope to fix it at service."
"I don't understand it; I had no grip here. Luckily it's OK in the forest. I tried to be more aggressive than
yesterday. It's just so slippy here."
"Harju? It's still shit! The stages to come are beautiful."
"We pushed because yesterday we had a no push day. A bite on the rim? I hit a bit but no problems, we have
rims at service!"
"We need to drive otherwise it wouldn't be Finland. I enjoy it a lot, it's a great event. For sure, I want to win, but
let's be realistic it's only the start of the rally."
"Some places come as a bit of a surprise. It was a bit more slippery than last night. It's always a shame to lose
some time on stages like that."
"On straight lines it's difficult. Ott is taking crazy risks and I won't take the same."
"There was some sand on the asphalt and it slowed us down a bit."
SS4
"I think it was OK as I didn't want to take too many risks. You take a little bit of a wrong line and you end up in
problems and I didn't want to do that.
"It was good. We are a bit compromised in things now but hopefully later on things will be better for us."
"Lots of learning. It feels much better, but the time gap is quite big still."
"We have a leak with the power steering so we can not fix it during this loop. I need to do what I can, but the steering is so tight."
"I stalled on the start! The strategy was not working and I lifted [off the throttle] too fast."
"It feels okay. Ott is doing a really nice job, but we had a really clean run. In some places I was too slow, but you can not do every corner perfect."
"That felt better, but a long way from perfect. I made a couple of mistakes in there that cost a few seconds."
Power steering issue
"I got completely off-line very close to the finish. I was trying to make a bit of time back that we lost this morning."
"I don't know why, this stage is more slippery than the others and I didn't feel so comfortable. The next stage will be better and I'll try to push in that one."
"It's a bit tricky. My hands are shaking a bit after a run like this. I'm not enjoying it."
"Pretty okay. It doesn't feel 100 per cent right somehow, but it was a clean run with no real mistakes. We need to work on a few things."
"To be honest, I tried to push a bit more but I feel like it's not coming together yet. We are constantly working and it's not easy."
"All the lines are there now, but it's still quite clogged after the 0 cars and everything. I am still opening the road in places, but it's better than the morning."
SS3
Puncture
Puncture
Damaged suspension
Accident
"Adrien touched a big rock. It's a nice stage, but it's my first time ever in this one and it's quite hard to drive fast. On this first pass I want to check things a little bit."
"I think we did a pretty good job in our preparations for this stage, but so did the others. When you have a new stage there's always a chance, but everybody knows it. The gaps are small anyway."
Damaged steering
"The car's fine - it's me. I don't know what's up. I tried my best to make it work."
"It was a lot of fun. The average speed must be unbelievable in there, but it was more slippery than I expected. I was hesitating so many times, but I enjoyed it anyway."
"It's not too bad, but I was not so happy with my driving because I was hesitating in many places where I could have been flat-out. It's a very high-speed stage."
"It still could have been better. It's difficult coming here with brand-new notes and it's such a fast stage. The sand kind of holds you - it's quite a different surface to the previous one and you can carry more speed than you think."
"All fine, but the grip is changing for me all the time. I just can not do more. There are a lot of corners which I know are flat, but I don't have the confidence. We can change what we want, but we will not find a good setting. It's frustrating but it's like this."
"Quite slippery. I enjoyed the stage, but being the first car is not always the most enjoyable. When you try to push hard you get some surprises, but we are here and we don't want to take any stupid risks."
SS2
"Lots of learning! In some places I am braking too early and in other places I am properly sideways. We will get there step-by-step."
"Oliver was really unfortunate - it was quite a slippery corner and I was surprised to see him. We had a clean stage and I had good confidence with the car. I tried to keep it within the lines, but it was a good start."
"On an apex I touched a rock that wasn't there on the recce. I got lucky on it."
"I think the time is pretty okay and I am satisfied with it. I know where I can be better, so it's not a problem."
"It was not the easiest stage. I didn't feel like I had any grip, so it's pretty hard to push. Even when you've got no grip, it still feels pretty god-damn epic..."
Rolled
"I have a small little problem with the intercom and I have only one earbud working. It's a little bit distracting, but quite an okay start."
"I spun at the end of the stage. I did a 360 because I spun the wrong way around. Maybe a few seconds I lost, but it's okay."
"No doubt it will be cleaning a lot for Kalle and Thierry, so we need to take the advantage at the moment. For sure, it's not comfortable in the car, but that's the only way we can go at the moment. We need to feel uncomfortable today."
"I'm not fully satisfied. It felt like there were certain areas I could have done better, but it's okay."
Spin
"My driving was good, but as soon as the road gets more flat, I have no grip. I am sliding and we just don't get any traction. We lost it all towards the end."
"There was a bit more cleaning than I was expecting. A lot of loose - it's not easy, but I tried my best."
SS1
"Of course, the feeling and expectations are there, but I think I put them on my own side anyway to try and win every rally. The situation is the same, we just have more support and it's a crazy atmosphere."
"I always like the super special stages and I had some great fun in there, but tomorrow is a whole different world. At the moment I do not feel comfortable. We made some set-up changes in shakedown and I'm crossing my fingers that tomorrow I will have a better feeling."
"You just need to have that level of confidence with the car and notes where everything is working. We certainly hope to find that but there's no guarantee."
"In this stage we were fighting so hard with the car... it's living its own life."
"We have no hybrid boost... It's not nice to be like this at the start, but hopefully the team can fix it."
"I tried my best to get through without making too many mistakes, but it was a lot slippier than I expected."
"It's a proper day tomorrow with some of the most beautiful stages we'll see all year. I hate this stage, so I'm always glad to see the end of it. We'll go tomorrow."
"I said let's go through this stage and then we will start to drive tomorrow. I have been trying for five years (to get a second Finland win) - you always like to!"
"It's always amazing to be on such a special rally. We will try to enjoy and take maximum pleasure."
"It's a dream come true to drive a WRC car in Finland. I took this one very easy - it's easy to make a mistake. The real rally starts tomorrow."
"It was the first stage and it's completely different to what we will find tomorrow. The key thing was not to make any mistakes and not to lose too much time."
"Amazing to be back in Finland, shakedown was amazing and this as well. Proper rally tomorrow, looking forward to that."
"It was an amazing feeling! I am happy that I didn't hit anything, so for me I think it's going quite well! It's nice to feel the power when you open the throttle."
"Much tighter than we are used to! Not so bad! Goal is to be inside top 20. For a 60 year old it will be tough, but we will go for it!"