Finnish racing sensation Kalle Rovanperä, driving the Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrid, is in pole position after the second day of the 80th Rally Poland, the seventh round of the World Rally Championship (WRC). Rovanperä, the current world champion, is followed closely by Norway’s Andreas Mikkelsen in the Hyundai I20 Rally1, who trails by just 9.4 seconds, and Britain’s Elfyn Evans in another Toyota Yaris, who is 16.1 seconds behind.
The rally faced its share of drama on Saturday when Kajetan Kajetanowicz, piloting a Skoda Fabia RS Rally2, suffered a major setback. Positioned second in the WRC2 category at the start of the day, Kajetanowicz hit a stone at high speed during the 11th special stage, Czarne 1, resulting in damage to his front suspension. Despite making repairs on the track, Kajetanowicz lost over 20 minutes and exceeded the delay limit, forcing him to withdraw from the subsequent stage.
Belgian driver Thierry Neuville, who leads the overall championship standings, finished the day in sixth place, 58.3 seconds behind Rovanperä, after a challenging series of stages.
In the WRC2 category, the leader’s board saw Finland’s Sami Pajari holding the top spot, 26.3 seconds ahead of Sweden’s Oliver Solberg. The best Polish driver in the WRC2, Mikołaj Marczyk, stands in ninth place, trailing Pajari by 1 minute and 31.1 seconds, and is 17th overall.
The final day of Rally Poland promises excitement with four special stages, including the power stages in Gmina Mrągowo and Mikołajki, set to begin at 2:15 PM.
As Kajetanowicz reflected on his misfortune and the rally ahead, he remained optimistic, stating, “It was an honor to compete here and showcase a strong pace in front of the Polish fans. Tomorrow, we’ll race not for a result, but for the joy of rallying. Despite today’s setback, racing here has been a pleasure.”
Stay tuned for more updates as the 80th Rally Poland races to a thrilling conclusion.