Kalle Rovanperä made history again on Sunday at the 2022 Rally New Zealand when he finished first and became the youngest ever FIA World Rally Champion at the tender age of just 22. The flying Finn already had five wins under his belt before the FIA World Rally Championship was moved to New Zealand, and he held his nerve to add another record to the history books. As the son of WRC race winner Harri, Kalle grew up behind the wheel of a rally car and can now relax and enjoy the last two races of the 2022 season in Spain and Japan.
Kalle grew up in Puuppola, just outside the Rally Finland host city of Jyväskylä, and was destined to follow in the footsteps of Harri and legendary Finnish drivers Marcus Grönholm, Tommi Mäkinen and Juha Kankkunen. Kalle began riding motorcycles and buggies at the age of three, learned to drive a car at six, and by eight was cruising through the woods in cars that his father had modified so he could reach the pedals.
Harri competed in the World Rally Championship between 1993 and 2006, driving for SEAT, Peugeot, Mitsubishi and the Red Bull-backed Škoda team. A winner of the 2001 Rally Sweden, he was a respected gravel specialist. Looking back on his childhood, Kalle revealed, "He was my first teacher. He taught me that the car had a steering wheel, an accelerator pedal and a clutch, and then told me to just drive." Just as Formula One world champion Max Verstappen was guided by his father Jos, Kalle grew up sliding across the gravel at full throttle and pressing the gas pedal. Mother Tiina added: "It's hard to learn to concentrate. You're either born with it or you're not. Kalle doesn't let outside things upset him and can quickly reset previous events."
Rovanperä was discovered early, first in 2009 when a YouTube clip showing the talented eight-year-old racing a Toyota Starlet through snowy forests went viral in the WRC paddock. At the age of 15, Kalle became R2 champion in Latvia, and the following year, equipped with a powerful Škoda Fabia R5, he became the youngest ever national rally world champion, defending that title in 2017. Mäkinen signed Kalle to Toyota Gazoo Racing, and Timo Jouhki - the legendary driver manager who guided the careers of Mäkinen, Kankkunen and Harri - took him on when he turned 16. The day after his 17th birthday, Kalle passed his driving test and was soon driving with Malcolm Wilson's M-Sport team in Rally GB, where he began his fruitful partnership with co-driver Jonne Halttunen.
At the final rally of the season in Australia, Kalle became the youngest driver to win a round in WRC2 and then went on to become the youngest winner of a WRC title in 2019 thanks to five WRC2 Pro wins. After completing 10 days of his mandatory military service in October 2019, Kalle returned for his WRC debut after securing a full-time race contract with Toyota Gazoo. In his 2020 debut, he became the youngest WRC driver and, in only his second outing in Sweden, the youngest driver to stand on the podium in WRC history - at just 19 years and 139 days. He finished the shortened season fifth overall and started the 2021 season by becoming the youngest driver to top the FIA World Rally Championship standings after a second-place finish at the Arctic Rally.
He claimed his first WRC victory on Rally Estonia when he took advantage of a puncture by leader Ott Tänak and beat Ireland's Craig Breen to become the youngest race winner at 20 years and 290 days. Another win at the Acropolis Rally gave him fourth place overall and ensured a fast start to 2022 as he took three early race wins in Sweden, Croatia and Portugal. Further wins in Kenya and Estonia led to his home race, Rally Finland, where second place behind Tänak set the stage for his greatest triumph to date and his first WRC title at the age of just 22. The previous record was set by Colin McRae at the age of 27. The two most successful drivers of all time, Sébastien Loeb and Sébastien Ogier, won their first titles at 30 and 29 respectively.
The world records of Kalle Rovanperä
Youngest national rally champion
First world champion in WRC2 Pro
Youngest WRC driver
Youngest WRC stage winner
Youngest WRC driver on the podium
Youngest driver at the top of the WRC standings
Youngest WRC rally winner
Youngest motorsport champions
Youngest F1 world champion: Sebastian Vettel, 2010, aged 23
Youngest MotoGP world champion: Marc Márquez, 2013, at the age of 20
Youngest WRC winner: Colin McRae, 1995, at age 27
Youngest winner of the Le Mans 24 Hours: Alexander Wurz, 1996, age 22
Youngest world champion in RX: Timmy Hansen, 27 years old
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