The Challenge Program drivers had previously sampled Finland’s gravel stages and asphalt roads in France and Italy last year. But the roads around Rovaniemi, the Arctic Rally host city, were a step into the unknown for all three, featuring icy and snowy forest lanes run both in daylight and at night.

Arctic Rally is the opening round of the Finnish Rally Championship, putting the Challenge Program trio up against Finland’s most promising youngsters in the SM3 category for front-wheel-drive Rally4 cars.

After a sensible first day of learning by Otake, where he rose from eighth to fourth place on the first leg, he put the hammer down on the second leg. Otake moved from fourth to second place on the second leg’s first two stages; he then scored his first Finnish SM3 stage win on the Ounasvaara test, closing the gap to the rally leader to under 30 seconds.

A spin on the penultimate stage meant Otake and co-driver Marko Salminen couldn’t contend for victory; regardless, Otake secured a career-best second place finish, improving on his third place from last year’s Ralli Mikkeli.

Yamamoto’s pace was also excellent throughout the event, running in second place after the first stage and taking his first SM3 stage win on the Arctic Rally’s final test, Ristilampi. A fuel pump issue on stage two had forced Yamamoto and his navigator Miika Teiskonen to retire and restart the next day, leaving them to finish eighth overall.

There was also a strong resurgence on the second day for Kogure. He had been unlucky to retire on the first day, when he slid wide on a slow bend and became stuck in the snow; his determination shone through the next day, going second-fastest during Otake and Yamamoto’s stage wins. Those quick times from Kogure and co-driver Topi Luhtinen helped them charge up to fifth place by the finish.

Quotes:
Hikaru Kogure:“I was so amazed and exhausted by the four-day recce; I've never experienced anything like it! And the stages were very long too. For much of the rally I struggled to be on the pace, especially in the higher-speed sections. But together with the coaches we analysed my driving and their advice worked well; by the end of the rally, I’d found a nice rhythm by adjusting my driving style to suit the roads. I’d felt a bit nervous about making my WRC debut in Sweden until the last loop of stages but I’m feeling much more confident now.”

Nao Otake:“I’m pleased with my result, though I still need to improve and work hard. It was difficult to keep a consistent pace across all the stages, especially at night when it was so snowy and difficult to see where I was going! It helped that our pacenotes were quite good, even if they were a little too safe in some of the trickier corners. What matters most is that I feel like I’ve gained lots of confidence from this rally, so I’m feeling great for our next event on snow.”

Yuki Yamamoto:“I’d found a great feeling with the car during our pre-event test, which allowed me to adapt to the unique challenges of contesting a snow rally for the first time so quickly. During last season, I had set some good stage times but lacked consistency; here we found a nice rhythm and good consistency, so I'm very happy with how the rally went regardless of our finishing position.”

Mikko Hirvonen (TOYOTA GAZOO Racing WRC Challenge Program chief instructor):“We knew that they were able to be fast and fight for podiums, even if it was their debut on a snow rally – to be able to be consistent all the way to the finish is the real challenge. There were other new challenges too; visibility was very low on the night stage when snow was falling, plus managing stud wear on the tyres is crucial – but they all managed this well. Nao drove a very mature rally; he built up his speed over the first day and then picked up the pace to fight for the podium places. He really showed his potential, and it has provided Nao with a great confidence boost. Yuki showed great mental fortitude too; he lost second place when his fuel pump failed but he came back and drove to his potential, not pushing too much but with excellent consistency. Hikaru was unlucky that he became stuck in the snow; it was a small, slow-speed mistake but he recovered well the next day and found a good rhythm.”