Just four stages stand between Kalle Rovanperä and his first triumph of 2023 after the Finn obliterated his rivals on Saturday at Vodafone Rally de Portugal. The 22-year-old, who is yet to win a rally so far this season, enters Sunday’s finale 57.5sec ahead of Hyundai Motorsport’s Dani Sordo. Sordo, starting his third round of the season, quickly diverted his attention to the chasing i20 N cars of team-mates Esapekka Lappi and Thierry Neuville. Lappi closed in on the Spaniard early in the day, climbing from fifth to third overall on the first pass of Vieira do Minho. But the Finn’s pace faded in the afternoon and he was passed by Neuville, who finished a mere 2.3sec ahead of him and 11.1sec adrift of Sordo. Sunday’s finale is all about the extraordinary Fafe, its big jump before the finish and its crowds.

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