Kalle Rovanpera commands second day of WRC Rally Islas Canarias

Toyota’s Kalle Rovanpera has commanded the second day of the World Rally Championship’s Rally Islas Canarias. 

Feature image credit: Jaanus Ree / Red Bull Content Pool

Rovanpera continued with his dominant start from the inaugural WRC rally in Gran Canaria as he went on to secure all but one stage win on the second day of the event. 

So far, the two-time world champion has secured 12 stage wins with the 13th going to his teammate, and championship leader, Elfyn Evans, on the final stage of the day, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. 

It meant Rovanpera extended his rally lead up to 45.2s over closest competitors Sebastien Ogier and Evans. 

Despite this, it wasn’t plain sailing for all. M-Sport Ford’s Gregoire Munster ran wide on stage 11 and caused his Rally1 Puma to get stuck. With spectator support, he was able to get unstuck and continue. 

However, the same could not be said for Toyota’s Sami Pajari, who ran wide at a left-hand bend and collided with the far-side barrier. The crew were okay, but they were forced to quickly pull over and retire thanks to heavy damage sustained in the collision. 

Pajari crashes on penultimate Saturday stage in WRC Rally Islas Canarias

How did the second day end?

Rovanpera remains the overall rally leader, despite losing out on the final stage win of the day. The two-time champion leads the pack with an advantage of 45.2s over Ogier and Evans, who sit in second and third, 45 seconds and one minute and eight seconds behind, respectively. 

Following Pajari’s retirement, it opens a hole for another competitor to filter in as the team previously locked out the top five positions. Takamoto Katsuta remains fourth, providing Toyota with a 1-2-3-4 standing, but Hyundai’s Adrien Fourmaux now occupies fifth. 

Defending drivers champion, and Hyundai driver, Thierry Neuville, occupies sixth ahead of teammate Ott Tanak in seventh. 

The two remaining Rally1 drivers, of M-Sport Ford, find themselves down in 10th and 13th with Joshua McErlean and Gregoire Munster, respectively. 

This has allowed two WRC2 competitors to breach the top 10 of the standings: Yohan Rossel and Alejandro Cachon, who now occupy eighth and ninth in the overall standings.

Read more WRC here:

• Rovanpera continues form on Saturday morning in WRC Rally Islas Canarias
• Rovanpera dominates opening day of WRC Rally Islas Canarias
• Weather Report: WRC Rally Islas Canarias 2025
• FIA announces Malcolm Wilson nomination as Deputy President for Sport
• WRC Rally Islas Canarias: 2025 Entry List
• Evans remains WRC Safari Rally Kenya leader after day three

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Kamron Kent

Hi, I’m Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion.

I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I’ve loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.

Kamron Kent

Hi, I'm Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion. I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I've loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.