Kalle Rovanpera: the next chapter

Like Max Verstappen in Formula 1, Kalle Rovanpera is a once in a generation natural talent. He's been driving rally cars for as long as he can remember – yet he's still only 23. Along the way he has broken records: youngest rally winner, youngest rally champion, and now youngest-ever two time champion. He has the world at his feet, and the keys to the best rally car in the business – the Toyota Yaris WRC – in his pocket. But for now he wants to hang them up from time to time. The young Finn dropped a bombshell on the rally world recently by announcing that he's only going to contest a part-time programme in 2024. So what prompted this decision?

“I think I had it in my mind for some time,” said Kalle. “So of course, it was a big decision, but it was also very well thought about. I'm confident with the decision and I'm 100% sure it's the right one.”

In the end, Kalle has been competing non-stop for more than a decade, despite his tender age, and rallying just isn't what it once was. “The sport has changed quite a lot with the videos. Everybody knows the stages so well from the videos that you need to watch them, so from Monday onwards we have no time at all. We don't go even go out for dinner.”

For those who wonder what Kalle is talking about, the videos aren't Netflix and chill, sadly for him. Instead, he's talking about the in-car videos of the stages, captured during the recce. There are strict rules about the number of times you're allowed to drive stages before the event, so that nobody gains an unfair advantage. But there are no rules about how often you're allowed to watch the videos that you film while doing the recce. And so, the life of a modern day rally driver is reduced to a type of high-speed groundhog day: wake up, drive stages, watch videos of stages, eat, sleep, repeat. “You end up sleeping just four or five hours a night, always having room service, and for the whole week you have no time for anything else; it's too intense,” points out Kalle. “I think this is the biggest issue at the moment. I think the schedule, the timing, and the videos on top of that is not working so well. And when you're tired, it's not so enjoyable. And you have to enjoy, otherwise what's the point?”

One of the things that Kalle is going to be doing with his new-found time off is a bit more drifting. That's at the heart of every rally driver in the end: a love of big slides. “I always liked drifting, even before it started to be more popular,” says Kalle. “I always thought when I saw drifting that I would be good at it that it would suit me well. I think I first tried it back in 2017 and 2018 and I've been loving it ever since.”

With the sport having been invented in Japan (who remembers ‘Tokyo Drift'?) it's somehow destiny that Kalle has ended up at Toyota: his commitment to the manufacturer remains undiminished despite his step back from the limelight, and he's just signed a multi-year deal. “It's a fantastic team that supports me, and where I feel completely at home,” he points out. “I hope I'm there for a very long time.”

But it won't just be rallying. Kalle is also going to be doing some circuit racing: something that he's become in increasingly interested in, which even led him to come and have a look round the season-closing Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. “I'm planning to do some testing at least and hopefully some events in circuit racing with Toyota. Of course the main focus for next year will be resting and recharging the batteries, but I would love to try this too.”

Toyota has just the machine for him as well: the recently-unveiled Lexus RCF GT3 car.

And of course rallying will always continue: not only will he do his part-programme of WRC events, but Kalle would also like to do some other events in different championships. Toyota reveals its eagerly-awaited Yaris R5 car next year, which opens up a whole host of other possibilities in Europe and beyond. And there's equally the possibility of some classic rallies on the horizon: Kalle has driven some of the cars that were around in his father's era, and thoroughly enjoyed them. The year spent recharging the batteries might just turn out to be busier than anticipated – but there's nothing more relaxing than just doing what you love.

“Getting the chance to try some races and some different rallies is really cool,” points at Kalle. “And it will definitely make me stronger in future.”

That's pretty bad news for everyone else.

For all that, family and friends time is what Kalle is going to enjoy most about next year. His gain is definitely the sport's loss but it's going to be fascinating to see what happens next in the WRC without him as a full-time participant: a bit like imagining Formula 1 if Max Verstappen suddenly weren't there. Suddenly, the title fight is wide open – but does it put Kalle's team mate, Elfyn Evans (who has finished second in the championship three times during the four years that he's been with Toyota) in pole position? “Perhaps, but Ott Tanak is going back to Hyundai and he'll be really quick. And there's Thierry Neuville, who is always there too. Honestly, I really don't know.”

He doesn't quite say ‘and it's not my problem either' – but that's probably  what he's thinking. For Kalle, a new life begins. He'll be back to the WRC full-time in 2025, or at least that's the plan for now, but a lot can change in 12 months. Kalle says that he'd love to test an F1 car one day. And with Toyota seeming to put down some ties with McLaren recently (thanks to Toyota factory driver Ryo Hirakawa being appointed as a McLaren reserve driver) it might not be a huge surprise to see Kalle sampling rather more horsepower than he's been used to in rallying recently. Whatever happens, 2024 is going to be thrilling year for the Mozart of the special stages.