Lauri Joona started WRC2 2025 campaign with fourth place

Lauri Joona finished fourth in the WRC2 class of Rally Sweden 2025.

The second WRC rally of the 2025 season was concluded on Sunday in Sweden.

Lauri Joona and Samu Vaaleri set out to race with the aim of scoring as many points as possible in the WRC2 class. The duo, competing in the Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 car of the Italian MS Munaretto team, drove the entire race confidently and without mistakes. However, they did not achieve a top performance this time and the duo was never able to completely shake off the top positions in the class.

- We started with a good rhythm on Friday, but the car went a little too far along the snowbanks, so we calmed down and then the times were looking better. A little understeer was noticeable in the afternoon. It was also difficult to find a good driving rhythm, as the grip varied a lot. However, we were able to pick up the pace as the race progressed but not enough to take third place, said Joona at the finish.

The leader of the WRC2 class in the Swedish Rally was Oliver Solberg, who led the race from start to finish. Roope Korhonen was second and Mikko Heikkilä was third. Joona, who finished fourth, was 35.6 seconds off the podium.

- Of course it's disappointing to just miss out on the podium, said a disappointed Joona.

In the WRC2 Challenger class, Joona collected the third-largest points pot. This class is open to drivers who have not previously won a WRC2 championship or who have not driven for a WRC1 team in their career for team points

Although the final result is disappointing, Lauri Joona also finds positive things about the Rally Sweden.

- When compared to last year, the gap to the top of the class has narrowed both in terms of time and position. The weather was great during the race and the sun was shining, so it was good to drive a rally there. It's a shame we didn't get third place, but we'll have a podium finish in the next races. We came close, though!

The next time Lauri Joona and Samu Vaaleri will compete for WRC2 points is in May at the Rally Portugal.

Final results: Rally Sweden, WRC2

1. Oliver Solberg (SWE), Toyota GR Yaris Rally2

2. Roope Korhonen (FIN) +42.5

3. Mikko Heikkilä (FIN) +1:08.3

4. Lauri Joona - Samu Vaaleri (FIN) +1:43.9

5. Isak Reiersen (SWE) +3:03.4