The final round of the Finland Rally Championship (FRC) was held in the south eastern city of Mikkeli from September 19th to 20th. Teammates J.Salo and K.Katajamäki were in 1st and 2nd overall position in the point standings as they went head to head in the final round of the 2008 season. This round would decide who will win the overall championship!
J.Salo driving the TYPE Gr.N equipped Lancer Evo.IX was under pressure to come home in front of his the closest rival, teammate and another TYPE Gr.N equipped driver K.Katajamäki. J.Salo and his co-driver M.Stenberg were determined to win, and kept their heads clear as they started the rally by setting the fastest times in the first two stages.
But in the third stage trouble occurred! J.Salo was given a 10second penalty for a false start. This meant J.Salo was now 5.4 seconds behind and just like in the last round, he was forced to play catch up. He drove hard and strong as he set the fastest times and was determined to win the championship. With two stages left, the gap between him and K. Katajamäki was now 8 seconds, but to J.Salo's advantage!
J.Salo drove fearlessly until the end and kept chasing the leader. His brave efforts allowed him to finish in 2nd place, and it was enough for him to win his fourth Finnish Rally Championship in group N! "We did not need to win this rally. Our main target was to be in front of K. Katajamäki in the finish line. We managed to do that so it feels fantastic. During this season we achieved two aims. Firstly we won Arctic Lapland Rally and finally we took the championship" said J.Salo. Teammate K. Katajamäki finished in 3rd position and finished 2nd overall in the 2008 championship.
This conclude the action filled 2008 Finnish Rally Championship season. The performance of the TYPE Gr.N shock absorber and the courageous drivers has dominated the season and a big congratulation goes out to J.Salo / M.Stenberg and K. Katajamäki / L.Hirvijärvi. Well done!!! |
