Kalle Rovanperä started the final stage with a 9.4-second advantage over Mikkelsen. However, Mikkelsen’s hopes of securing his second victory in the Rally Poland were dashed when he reached the end of the first stage with a tire off the wheel. As a result, he dropped to sixth place at the end of the rally, while M-Sport Ford’s Adrien Fourmaux finished third, 14.4 seconds behind Evans.
Rovanperä expressed his satisfaction with the week’s performance, acknowledging the team’s hard work and the valuable points they earned for the manufacturers’ championship. He also emphasized that the decision to participate in the rally was a good one.
Mikkelsen, who was seeking his first victory since 2016, led the rally on Friday but fell behind Rovanperä in the penultimate stage. The damage caused by the loose tire forced him to adopt a cautious approach in the final stages.
Evans had a relatively successful rally compared to his main title rivals. Despite suffering a tire delamination on Saturday and a slow puncture in the final stages, he managed to overtake Ott Tänak and reclaim second position in the drivers’ championship. He also reduced the gap to current leader Thierry Neuville to 15 points, with six stages remaining.
M-Sport Ford Puma driver Fourmaux secured his third podium of the season, finishing 28.1 seconds ahead of Neuville. Meanwhile, Mārtiņš Sesks impressed with an impressive fifth place in his debut in the top category. Although he drove a non-hybrid Puma, he will upgrade to a full-specification car for his home stage next month.
Mikkelsen crossed the finish line more than two minutes behind Rovanperä, in sixth place, followed by Grégoire Munster and Takamoto Katsuta. Sami Pajari secured ninth place and emerged as the winner in the WRC2 category. Oliver Solberg took advantage of Robert Virves’ tire puncture to infiltrate the top 10.
For a full rally report, please refer to the next edition of Motorsport Monday.
