› Sharing a Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 of team Toksport WRT, Estonian pairing Robert Virves/Jakko Viilo finishes the ninth round of the World Championship third in WRC2.
› Former WRC2 champions Emil Lindholm/Reeta Hämäläinen from Finland bring their Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 home in WRC2 fourth position.
› Three other Škoda crews also collect WRC2 points.
Jyväskylä (FIN), 3 August 2025 – After winning WRC2 at the recent Rally Estonia, Robert Virves and co-driver Jakko Viilo also stood on the category podium at Rally Finland. The Estonians powered their Toksport WRT run Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 to third position in WRC2 at the FIA World Rally Championship’s ninth round. Their local teammates, Emil Lindholm/Reeta Hämäläinen, as well as three more Škoda crews also finished inside the top 10 of WRC2.
Not surprisingly, Rally Finland favoured the local drivers. With average speeds on the stages repeatedly exceeding 125 kph and countless jumps, experience was the most valuable asset for both drivers and co-drivers. While Kalle Rovanperä/Jonne Halttunen won their home event overall, the WRC2 category saw a three-day long duel between eventual winners Roope Korhonen/Anssi Viinikka and Jari-Matti Latvala/Janni Hussi. Only one other Finnish pairing could regularly match the speed of the front-running duo: Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 crew Emil Lindholm and Reeta Hämäläinen. The former WRC2 champions even led the category after the Friday morning loop.
However, a puncture during the first stage after the lunch break cost the Toksport WRT pairing more than a minute, dropping them back to twelfth position. “The rally is not over yet,” Lindholm showed an extra dose of “sisu” (Finnish for determination). With a string of fast stage times, they fought their way back up the leaderboard. They overtook Yuki Yamamoto/Topi Luhtinen during the very last stage, finally securing fourth position in WRC2.
Fresh from winning WRC2 at their home event, Estonians Robert Virves and co-driver Jakko Viilo quickly established themselves as fastest non-Finns in WRC2. When Latvala/Hussi were held up by heavy rain on Friday, the Škoda crew moved up to second place in the category. The Saturday leg didn’t go as well. The Toksport WRT duo dropped to fourth place in the WRC2 category due to a slow puncture. But they regained one place quickly, eventually finishing third in WRC2. Robert Virves climbed to fifth position in the overall standings. “I am pleased and at the same time just a little disappointed, because we were very close to the top after Friday. Since Saturday, the feeling has not been the best. But that’s the second podium in a row, and this is something we can be proud of,“ the 25-year old Estonian said.
Czech Škoda pairing Martin Prokop/Michal Ernst came home seventh in WRC2 followed by local crew Lauri Joona/Samu Vaaleri, sharing a Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 of team MS Munaretto. 18-year old Italian Giovanni Trentin and co-driver Alessandro Franco (Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 of MT Racing SRL) scored a fine tenth place at their Rally Finland debut.
Two Škoda crews not competing for WRC2 points made it into the top 10 of the RC2 classification. Nikolay Gryazin/Konstantin Aleksandrov (Delta Rally Team) finished fourth. Englishman Gus Greensmith and Swedish co-driver Jonas Andersson (RaceSeven) came home in eighth position. Victory in the WRC Masters Cup went to Uǧur Soylu/Sener Güray (Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 of GP Garage My Team) from Turkey. Another Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 turned heads on the Harju city stage only: Two-times former FIA World Rally Champion and seven-time Rally Finland winner Marcus Grönholm entertained the spectators with demo runs at the wheel of the car from Mladá Boleslav.
The FIA World Rally Championship now heads to South America for the next two events. Rally del Paraguay, based in Encarnación, is a new addition to the calendar and will take place from 28 to 31 August 2025.
Number of the rally: 5
Five Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 crews finished inside the top 10 of the WRC2 as well as of the RC2 classification, making the Czech brand the most strongly represented in both categories in terms of numbers.
Rally Finland (FIN), 31 July – 3 August 2025, Result WRC2
1 Roope Korhonen/Anssi Viinikka (FIN/FIN), Toyota GR Yaris Rally2, 2:29.47.8 hours
2 Jari-Matti Latvala/Janni Hussi (FIN/FIN), Toyota GR Yaris Rally2, +1.1 seconds
3 Robert Virves/Jakko Viilo (EST/EST), Škoda Fabia RS Rally2, +43.1 seconds
4 Emil Lindholm/Reeta Hämäläinen (FIN/FIN), Škoda Fabia RS Rally2, +1:35.3 minutes
5 Yuki Yamamoto/Topi Luhtinen (JPN/FIN), Toyota GR Yaris Rally2, +1:36.8 minutes
6 Romet Jürgenson/Siim Oja (EST/EST), Ford Fiesta Rally2, +1:43.4 minutes
Standings WRC2/Drivers (after 9 of 14 rallies)
1 Oliver Solberg (SWE), Toyota, 85 points
2 Yohan Rossel (FRA), Citroën, 82 points
3 Roope Korhonen (FIN), Toyota, 69 points
4 Gus Greensmith (GBR), Škoda, 57 points
5 Robert Virves (EST), Škoda, 50 points
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