Chapter I: Suninen Breaks His Polish Jinx on Silesian Asphalt
On his fifth attempt at Rally Poland, Teemu Suninen finally stood on the top step of the podium. After seizing the lead on SS4 on Saturday, Suninen and Haapala managed their advantage through Sunday’s final seven special stages. Winning five of the 14 completed stages, the Finnish driver controlled the pace from the front, resisting intense pressure during the final loop to lock in his victory and extend his lead in the FIA ERC Drivers’ Championship.
Chapter II: Jakub Matulka Claims Historic First FIA ERC Podium
Jakub Matulka and co-driver Daniel Dymurski achieved a career-milestone result by finishing second overall, just 9.7 seconds behind Suninen. The ORLEN LOTTO Rally Team crew was the fastest pair on stage times throughout the rally, claiming a total of six special stage victories more than any other crew in the field. Their second-place finish marks Matulka’s first-ever overall podium in the FIA European Rally Championship.
Chapter III: Marczyk Secures Third in Tightly Contested Top Four
Mikołaj Marczyk and Szymon Gospodarczyk (Škoda Fabia RS Rally2) completed the overall podium in third place, finishing just 3.8 seconds behind Matulka and 13.5 seconds off the winning time. Andrea Mabellini and Virginia Lenzi (Lancia Ypsilon Rally2) claimed fourth overall (+16.1s) after winning the final Power Stage (Województwo Śląskie). With the top four crews separated by a mere 16.1 seconds after three days of competition, the 82nd Rally Poland proved to be one of the closest FIA ERC encounters of the season.
Chapter IV: Class Triumphs in ERC3 and Junior ERC
In the ERC3 class, Finland’s Ville Vatanen and Joonas Ojala (Ford Fiesta Rally3) inherited the victory after long-time leader Michał Chorbiński suffered late mechanical failure. Irish crews Casey Jay Coleman / Killian McArdle and Kalum Graffin / Rhodri Evans completed the ERC3 podium. In Junior ERC, Tom Heindrichs and Jonas Schmitz took top honors aboard their Opel Corsa Rally4.
Chapter V: Updated FIA ERC Standings After Round 4
Suninen’s triumph in Poland solidifies his lead at the top of the European Rally Championship standings with 80 points. Andrea Mabellini moves up to second place with 57 points, while Mikołaj Marczyk ascends to third with 47 points.
Official Final Classification — 82nd Rally Poland (FIA ERC Top 5):
- Teemu Suninen / Antti Haapala (Škoda Fabia RS Rally2) — 1:38:52.8
- Jakub Matulka / Daniel Dymurski (Škoda Fabia RS Rally2) — +9.7s
- Mikołaj Marczyk / Szymon Gospodarczyk (Škoda Fabia RS Rally2) — +13.5s
- Andrea Mabellini / Virginia Lenzi (Lancia Ypsilon Rally2) — +16.1s
- Kajetan Kajetanowicz / Maciej Szczepaniak (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2) — +41.5s
