Kalle Rovanpera becomes youngest driver to win the World Rally Championship

Toyota WRT driver Kalle Rovanpera of Finland celebrates with a new World Rally Championship title during the 2022 Rally New Zealand at Jack Ridge in the outskits of Auckland on October 2, 2022. (Photo by John COWPLAND / AFP) (Photo by JOHN COWPLAND/AFP via Getty Images)

Records broken - even shattered as Finland’s Kalle Rovanpera became the youngest ever driver to win the World Rally Championship. 

Celebrating his 22nd birthday on Saturday’s leg, he went on to take his Toyota Gazoo Racing Yaris Rally1 to victory on the Repco Rally New Zealand and with maximum points from the Power Stage secured the title and Finland’s first since Marcus Gronholm’s victory twenty years ago.

In just his third season and his 30th start at the top flight, Rovanpera eclipsed the record previously held by Colin McRae, who won the WRC in 1995 when he was 27 years and 89 days old. Rovanpera required seven more points than title rival, Hyundai’s Ott Tanak, to seal the deal. Fourth on the Power Stage would have been enough, but Rovanpera did it in style. "It was a small wait after a few difficult rallies, but the biggest thanks goes to the team - they made this rocket (his car) this year.” said the newly-crowned champion.

As his co-driver Jonne Halttunen celebrated, a forlorn Craig Breen and his Killarney co-driver Paul Nagle (Ford Puma Rally1) finished a frustrating event with a punctured wheel, down in nineteenth place, some 38 minutes behind the winners. It all went wrong for the Waterford driver on the opening leg, having led after S.S. 3, he slid down a bank on a notorious bend during S.S. 5 at the same spot where Colin McRae (Ford Focus WRC) slid off in 2002.

Although he eventually drove out of the stage, he lost over 18 minutes and retired with clutch trouble. At the stage end Breen said, “I know I shouldn’t be doing all these mistakes, but it is really tough.” He re-joined under Super Rally and set a few fastest stage times as he benefitted from his road position. His team mate Gus Greensmith rolled out in spectacular fashion on Saturday bringing more headaches for M-Sport. 

On the Power Stage, Breen coasted to the finish with a punctured wheel. “It's something that's caught us out in the past - just a tyre debead on a jump. It's kind of the way things are going at the moment.” Meanwhile, Waterford’s Andrew Purcell and his Wexford co-driver Andy Hayes crashed out of the Chris Kelly Memorial Rally on the Isle of Man late on Friday night. Entering the ninth (halfway) stage of the event they held a 21 second lead only to slide their Skoda Fabia R5 off the road on a right hand bend. The event was won by top seed Peter Taylor (Ford Fiesta WRC), who finished 31 seconds ahead of the Ford Fiesta R5 of Neil Roskell with Steve Wood (Ford Fiesta WRC) a minute and 36 seconds further behind in third.

Elsewhere, the Novice and local crew of Aiden Keenan and Sean Marron (Subaru) won the Monaghan Navigation Trial that was based in Ballybay. They finished the event on seven penalties and fended off the challenges of three Experts crews, all of whom finished with ten penalties with their results calculated on the “furthest cleanest” rule.

Repco Rally New Zealand (Round 11 World Rally Championship): 1. K. Rovanpera/J. Halttunen (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) 2h. 48m. 1.4s; 2. S. Ogier/B. Veillas (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1)+34.6s; 3. O. Tanak/M. Jarveoja (Hyundai i20 Rally1)+48.5s; 4. T. Neuville/M. Wydaeghe (Hyundai i20 Rally1)+1m. 58.8s; 5. O. Solberg/E. Edmondson (Ford Puma Rally1)+3m. 55.3s; 6. H. Paddon/J. Kennard (Hyundai i20 Rally2)+10m. 3.7s. 19. C. Breen/P. Nagle (Ford Puma Rally1)+38m. 59.4s Drivers' Championship (Standings after Round 11 of 13):1. K. Rovanpera 237pts (Champion); 2. O Tanak 173pts; 3. T Neuville 144pts; 4. E. Evans 116pts; 5. T. Katsuta 100pts; 6. C. Breen 77pts.

Manufacturers’ Championship (Standings after Round 11 of 13):1. Toyota Gazoo WRT 455pts; 2. Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT 374pts; 4. M-Sport ford WRT 224pts; 4. Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT NG 112pts.

Chris Kelly Memorial Rally (Isle of Man): 1. P. Taylor/J. Morton (Ford Fiesta WRC) 1h. 55m. 23s; 2. N. Roskell/A. Roughead (Ford Fiesta R5)+31s; 3. S. Wood/D. Bowen (Ford Fiesta WRC)+2m. 07s; 4. J. Stone/L. Connell (VW Polo GTi R5)+2m. 54s; 5. S. Simpson/P. Walsh (Ford Fiesta Rally2)+5m. 44s; 6. D. Atkinson/P. Sandham (Ford Escort)+5m. 59s.

Monaghan Navigation Trial, Ballybay: 1. A. Keenan/S. Marron (Subaru) 7 penalties; 2. M. Tynan/C. Tynan (Subaru) 10pens; 3. D. Kelly/O. Sherlock (Subaru) 10pens; 4. S. Dalton/R. Treanor (Subaru) 10pens; 5. E. Dixon/M. Lennon (Subaru) 12pens; 6. J. McCabe/S. Farrell (Subaru) 12pens.