Kalle Rovanperä leads a Toyota quintet on Friday at the Canary Islands Rally – Hyundai drivers search for the right setup
The first day of the Canary Islands Rally, which is making its debut in the World Rally Championship (WRC), looked at times like a Toyota one-make cup at WRC level on Friday. After six of 18 special stages, the five Yaris drivers are all in the lead, with Kalle Rovanperä at the top.
In changeable weather conditions with a mix of sun, fog, and partially wet roads, the Finn drove in a class of his own and won all six special stages.
This gives him a 26.8-second lead over Sebastien Ogier. Third is World Championship leader Elfyn Evans (+36.4 seconds). Their teammates Sami Pajari and Takamoto Katsuta follow in fourth and fifth place. (To the results)
Rovanperä finds the key to the tires
The fastest Hyundai driver, Thierry Neuville, is only in sixth place. However, the Belgian is already 1:13.3 minutes behind the leader. Neuville is closely followed by his team-mates Ott Tänak and Adrien Fourmaux, with only 1.5 seconds separating the three Hyundai drivers. Gregoire Munster (Ford) and Yohan Rossel (Citroen), who leads the WRC2 standings, complete the top ten.
After struggling to get to grips with this year’s new Hankook tires in the first three rallies of the 2025 season, Rovanperä put in his best performance of the 2025 WRC season on Friday, of all places on asphalt, which is not his preferred surface.
“I think we’ve found some ideas and a way to drive the car, especially with these new tires. I think that’s what makes the biggest difference,” said Rovanperä. The fact that the rally in Gran Canaria is new territory for all drivers also played into the Finn’s hands, in his own estimation.
Hyundai drivers already trailing significantly
“Of course, we have completely new stages and new pace notes, and I think we’ve done a pretty good job with that. Even on the first run, I felt quite comfortable on the twisty roads, which are usually quite difficult,” said the two-time world champion, who honed his skills on asphalt last year by competing in circuit races.
While Toyota had everything under control on the first day, the Hyundai drivers struggled with the setup of their cars, especially in the morning. “We have understeer, it [the car] is lacking everything, so you can’t drive fast and you can’t attack,” complained Neuville.
“We kind of know where the problem is coming from, but why it’s so noticeable with this improved chassis compared to the previous car is still hard to explain,” said Tänak. Technical director Francois-Xavier Demaison, for his part, was surprised by the problems on the first day after a successful test.
During the midday service, however, Hyundai found a better setup, and in the afternoon, Neuville and Tänak in particular got to grips with the car and posted faster times. “It was perhaps the first stage where I was able to attack a little more, but I was still a long way off. The tires are working well,” said Neuville after the fifth stage. However, Hyundai is already trailing significantly behind.
On Saturday, seven special stages totaling 142.08 kilometers are on the program for the Canary Islands Rally.
