Esapekka Lappi and Jonne Ferm held a narrow lead on the first full day of rallying in the Swedish snow, a day that saw three different names heading the timesheets. The Hyundai Shell Mobis i20 N pair took four stage wins from Friday’s seven stages on a day that saw the reigning champions Kalle Rovanperä and Jonne Halttunen return for the first time this season.
It snowed consistently throughout the day, with visibility and consistently changing road conditions the major talking point for all the drivers.
Rovanperä took the first stage win on Friday morning, the Toyota Gazoo racing Yaris pair looking comfortable being back on the stages.
Road position was all-important and with the teams running in championship order, it was Thierry Neuville and Martijn Wydaeghe who fared worst, never running higher than fifth overall.
Elfyn Evans/Scott Martin were equally hampered, and it too showed, while Ott Tänak/Martin Järveoja had a bit of an advantage in the second Hyundai running third.
Stage four turned the rally on its head. Both Rovanperä and Tänak had an unscheduled meeting with the unforgiving snowbanks with sufficient force to cause both to retire from the day’s action.
Takamoto Katsuta/Aaron Johnston not only took the stage win in their GR Yaris but the rally lead as well, some 11.4 seconds in hand over Lappi.
After the midday service, it was back to the snow of the forests. Stage five was a strange one – the top five times were all set by WRC2 drivers; Georg Linnamäe/James Morgan (Toyota Yaris), Oliver Solberg/Elliot Edmonson (Skoda), Mikko Heikkalä/Kristian Temonen (Yaris), Lauri Joona/Janni Hussi (Skoda) and Fabrizio Zaldivar/Marcelo der Ohannesian (Skoda) all beat Lappi in his Rally1 Hyundai.
Lappi however, slashed Katsuta’s lead down to 5.4 seconds and one stage later, there was just three tenths in it.
Stage six saw another development. Neuville’s car refused to fire up, so Evans suddenly found himself first on the road, a situation which incensed the Welshman. “I guess the spirit of competition has gone out of the window, he said. “The difference between being first and second on the road is huge but let’s wait to cast judgement before I say something I’ll regret.”
The implication was clear. It was a deliberate ploy by Hyundai to fall back in the running order and gain more time. Neuville however, arrived four minutes late at the time control and received a 40 second penalty, which dropped him to 11th overall.
Adrien Fourmaux/Alexandre Coria were having a whale of a time in their M-Sport Ford Puma, holding third overall after SS6 but with Solberg flying through the worsening conditions, he was under pressure.
Lappi beat Katsuta by 2.1 seconds in stage seven and took the lead by 1.8 seconds with one short stage remaining which Lappi duly won from Katsuta, to end the day 3.2 seconds ahead of the Japanese crew and in third position overall, Solberg.
Fourmaux, with limited experience of arctic racing did a brilliant job to bring his Puma home in fourth 23.7 seconds ahead of the furious Evans. Four Finns filled out the top ten headed by Sami Pajari/Enni Mälkönen (Toyota), Roope Korhonen/Anssi Viinikka (Toyota), Heikkila and Joona.
Saturday was shaping up to be a slugfest between Lappi and Katsuta, with the nearest Rally 1 rival, Fourmaux, nearly a minute and a half behind.
