P1racenews AI automatic summary:
WRC Sweden: Lappi ends victory drought with comfortable win
Part-time driver Esapekka Lappi and co-driver Janne Ferm secured their second career win, overcoming 18 challenging snow stages with a margin of 29.6 seconds over Toyota’s Elfyn Evans. Lappi’s victory marked the end of a six and a half-year dry spell and came at the beginning of his 2024 part-time program. Adrien Fourmaux of M-Sport claimed his debut WRC podium finishing 47.9s behind Lappi. Thierry Neuville of Hyundai earned fourth place, while Oliver Solberg impressed with fifth place overall and a win in the WRC2 class on home turf. Changeable weather conditions, including heavy snow showers, added complexity to the competition, leading to unforeseen leaderboard fluctuations.
Kalle Rovanpera and Ott Tanak faced setbacks with crashes into snowbanks, forcing them out of contention during Friday’s stages. Takamoto Katsuta briefly held the lead before a mishap on stage 10 dashed his hopes for a maiden victory. Lappi maintained control and built a substantial lead over Fourmaux, eventually securing the win and 18 points under the new points system. Fourmaux, Evans, and Neuville also earned valuable points, showcasing a mix of resilience and strategic prowess throughout the rally. In the end, Lappi’s calculated performance allowed him to clinch the long-awaited victory since his triumph in Finland back in 2017.
