Kalle Rovanpera described his recovery to fourth in Monte Carlo as “not a total disaster” for the start of his pursuit of a third World Rally Championship title.
Rovanpera has openly admitted that Monte Carlo is not among the events that suit him, but last weekend he struggled to perform to his own high standards on Hankook's slick tyre.
The Finn found himself sitting in sixth on Friday, admitting that he needed to change his driving style to adapt to the new-for-2025 rubber.
Rovanpera did find some improvements on Sunday and was helped by an inspired tyre call in changeable weather to finish second in the Super Sunday standings, also stealing fourth away from Hyundai’s Ott Tanak.
Although Rovanpera finished the rally 54.3s adrift of eventual winner and Toyota team-mate Sebastien Ogier, the two-time world champion felt his weekend wasn’t as bad as first feared.
Considering Ogier is contesting a partial season, Rovanpera leaves Monte Carlo eight points behind effective championship leader and Monte runner-up Elfyn Evans (Toyota).
“At the end, at least I managed to get some okay points,” Rovanpera told Motorsport.com. “A good tyre choice and a good Sunday saved us some good points, so at the end it is not a total disaster.
“For sure, we learned a lot and today [Sunday] we did some small changes on the car.
“It was the first time trying the slick with these new things, and I think we could have been better through the weekend with this, but at least it was good to find it.
“I tried of course [to adapt my driving style to the tyres], but during the race it is not so easy.
“Usually you need some help from the car side as well, something to support you as you drive a bit differently.”
Rovanpera will soon begin preparations for Rally Sweden next month, a rally where he is expected to be among the favourites for victory.
The 24-year-old has previously tasted victory on the Swedish snow in 2022, which prompted the start of a dominant run to his maiden WRC title.
