By their very nature, tarmac rallies can be quite mundane affairs, especially if the weather plays its part and conditions don’t change.
But throw in some spicy weather and some difficult tyre choices, and suddenly the rally can light up with more twists and turns than the roads on which they are held on.
That was exactly the case in Croatia last weekend when Kalle Rovanpera (main picture) produced a scintillating final stage drive to claim an incredible victory.
At times, the second WRC running of the Croatia Rally was held in atrocious weather conditions, and the final day will go down as one of the most remarkable in recent memory.
Rovanpera had led from stage one in his Toyota Yaris Rally1, but he was caught on the wrong tyres on the penultimate stage when the heavens opening. Suddenly, he had relinquished the lead to Hyundai’s Ott Tanak.
Regardless of his dominance, it appeared the Finn’s victory chances were gone, but his drive on the final stage – when he bested Tanak by 5.7 seconds – gave him the most incredible victory.
It was, quite likely, the drive of the season, and will probably remain that way.
Rovanpera’s rally-long domination gave him a maximum of 30 WRC points, but had it not been for a series of penalties, the win could actually have gone to Hyundai’s Thierry Neuville.
The Belgian incurred a minute of penalties for a series of mechanical problems over the course of the weekend, and a further minute of penalties for an unacceptable speeding infringement when he was nabbed for doing 156km/h in an 80km/h zone.
A final stage off eventually put him 2m21s behind Rovanpera, but he was clearly the fastest man for the majority of the rally.
The crystal ball that is tyre choice on an event with unpredictable weather was what made the rally such an epic. Those who gambled reaped the rewards, while those who thought they had played it safe were left to lick their wounds.
Kalle Rovanpera now holds a commanding 30 point lead in the World Rally Championship, and while the season may only be three rallies old, he’s going to be hard to catch.
The WRC now moves onto gravel for the first time in 2022 when crews head to Portugal in a month’s time. It will be another huge test for the new hybrid cars, and we’ll finally get a look at which team has the season’s best overall package.
Oh, and a bloke by the name of Loeb will return as well, adding more spice to an already enticing WRC season.
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