The Albany Gazette - Evans leads Rally of Finland as Rovanpera, Tanak crash

Toyota driver Evans was ahead of Belgian Thierry Neuville, in a Hyundai, by just 6.9 seconds and Japan's Takamoto Tatsuta, in another Toyota, by 16.4 seconds at the end of 10 of 22 stages.

"We don't know if we'll be able to start again. When the car comes back, the mechanics will examine it and repair it. Generally, they can do it if the chassis is not damaged," said Rovanpera.

The young Finn flipped his Toyota over on its roof after losing control on a rain-hit forest mud track during the eighth stage.

Both Rovanpera and his co-driver Jonne Halttunen were unharmed but unable to continue in the heavily damaged car.

Rovanpera's accident came hours after Ott Tanak's hopes went up in smoke when the 2019 world champion was forced to retire his stricken M-Sport Ford.

The Estonian led the ninth leg of the rally world championship after Thursday's super stage.

But mechanical failure in the third stage triggered his premature exit from an event he has won three times.

Arriving in Finland, the ninth round of the championship, Rovanpera had a lead of 55 points over Evans in the standings.

Even if he cannot restart the rally on Saturday, he will still hold the series lead with four rounds left in the 2023 championship.

Meanwhile, Jari-Matti Latvala, the Toyota team's race director, found himself in the unusual position of being both competitor and team manager on Friday.

At 38, he decided to take the wheel for an event he won three times when he was still a driver.

"Tatsuta is now in a position to help Elfyn for the championship," said Latvala who was fifth in the standings on Friday, 1min 23.7sec off Evans's lead.

(B.Hartmann--BBZ)