How flying Finn Rovanpera conquered Safari Rally
Sponsored by Safari Rally Kenya
What you need to know:
- He joined Toyota for 2020 and on just his second event in Sweden, he became the youngest podium finisher in WRC history at 19 years and 139 days. More records surely lie in wait for the likeable Rovanperä.
- In 2021, aged 20 years and 290 days, he became the youngest rally winner in WRC history in Estonia.
By Peter Njenga
The rallying career of Kalle Rovanpera is a fairly tale, with the future showing nothing but great hope for the 21-year-old who is destined to rule the scene for years to come.
The Finn has won six rounds of the World Rally Championship series before his 22nd birthday.
He is destined to become the youngest world champion should his luck and winning streak continue.
The late Collins McRae from Scotland holds the record, having achieved the feat in 1995 at the age of 25
“This feels good,” Rovanperä said in the end at Hell’s Gate in Naivasha where local Masai dancers welcomed him on Sunday.
“Of course, this win is a bit more special than the other ones. The Safari is a rally which is very well-known from a long time ago and it’s also always been a really important event for Toyota," he said.
The GR Yaris car was pretty much faultless. But Rovanperä also had to jump in and drive the car, which is never an easy task in deep ruts and fesh-fesh sand.
Saturday proved a pivotal day for the youngster. Waterlogged conditions derailed other drivers’ charges, but he thrived and extended his advantage over his team-mate Elfyn Evans by 24.5sec.
Takamoto Katsuta and Sébastien Ogier completed the Yaris quartet on the podium.
“It feels quite amazing what we have achieved and it’s actually quite funny that Toyota was the team to make it the previous time. To also be the winning car in a result like this - it’s just fantastic,” Rovanpera said.
“I’m really proud of the team and what they have done in such a short time to prepare for this rally. The car was really strong but also very fast, and we had no issues in such extreme conditions,” he added.
But who is Rovanpera?
The Finn became the youngest rally winner in WRC history in 2021. He has been part of the rallying cult since age eight when he was filmed drifting a small rally car through snowy forests like an expert in Finland.
Years later, the video went viral on social media and his life was never to be the same since.
Rally is part of his DNA, just like his father Harri, a factory driver for many makes including Seat and Peugeot. Harri won the 2001 WRC Sweden.
He knew his son would one day be a force to reckon with since he was a toddler. So he decided to take him to Latvia at 12 to start rallying because Finnish laws don’t allow people below 18 to compete in motorsport.
He also enlisted the services of his former co-driver Risto Pietiläinento drive in closed oad sections. He easily won the Latvian Junior Championship in 2015, following up with the main championship in 2016 and 2017 in a Skoda Fabia.
Rovanperä came under the patronage of manager legend Timo Jouhki, who sent him to the Italian Championship in 2016 for asphalt experience at 18, according to WRC.com.
Rovanperä passed his driving test in 2017, a day after his 17th birthday, courtesy of a waiver by the Finnish government.
He started Rally GB three weeks later and in the season finale in Australia he became the youngest driver ever to win a WRC2 round.
He signed for Skoda Motorsport in 2018 and drove a Fabia R5 in WRC2, finishing third with two wins.
Twelve months later he became the youngest winner of a WRC title by topping WRC2 Pro for the Czech squad.
He joined Toyota for 2020 and on just his second event in Sweden, he became the youngest podium finisher in WRC history at 19 years and 139 days. More records surely lie in wait for the likeable Rovanperä.
In 2021, aged 20 years and 290 days, he became the youngest rally winner in WRC history in Estonia.
He added another victory to his tally shortly afterwards in Greece, before ending the season in fourth.
The Safari had many surprises in the R2 category too. Kajetan Kajetanowicz of Poland scored a career-best win on Sunday to top the standings.
The Pole, competing in Africa for the first time, led from start to finish of the gruelling four-day fixture in a Škoda Fabia Rally2.
Kajetanowicz won by the massive margin of 19min 08.2sec and topped off a perfect weekend by scoring maximum bonus points in the rally-closing Wolf Power Stage. He leapt from fifth in the standings to lead by five points after six of 13 WRC rounds.
The three-time European champion steered clear of major problems on rocky and muddy tracks in the Great Rift Valley around Lakes Naivasha and Elementeita.
His lead grew to huge proportions as his rivals struggled to match his pace and the conditions.
Kajetanowicz started Sunday’s third and final leg with an advantage of more than 20 minutes and could afford to measure his pace through the closing six speed tests.
It’s an unbelievable day,” he said. “This is like a dream and I don’t want to wake up. I think we won the hardest rally in the WRC and it was always in my dreams to start here. We are leading the championship and maybe that’s a surprise for me.”
This victory in the championship’s premier support category adds to his WRC2 success in Turkey in 2019, when the series formed the sport’s third tier.
Second place for Sean Johnston of the United States navigated by Kenya Alexander Kihurani overcame sickness as well as brake and engine problems in his Citroën C3 Rally2 to record a career best result.
“I’m feeling much, much better today,” he said. “The car was back to full power and I was back to 85 per cent, as opposed to the 20 yesterday. I’m really proud. To be here at the end is a huge achievement. It was a massive crazy adventure and we absolutely loved it.”
Amaanraj Singh Rai completed the podium in another Fabia. The Kenyan was a further 10min 05.7sec back with Aakif Varani fourth, and the final finisher, also in a Škoda.
Karan Patel did not start the final leg after being disqualified from fifth on Saturday night after his team removed technical seals from the gearbox and rear differential housings of his Ford Fiesta.