Estonian Ott Tänak took the lead in Rally Finland, 9th round of the WRC world championship, after the first special stage contested on Thursday in the streets of Jyväskylä (south).
Tänak (M-Sport/Ford) was 6/10 ahead of Belgian Thierry Neuville (Hyundai) and 7/10 of stage local and reigning world champion Kalle Rovanperä (Toyota).
This first special will be followed by nine others on Friday, eight on Saturday and four on Sunday, the last day of the event.
Rovanperä is currently at the top of the world championship standings with a 55-point lead over his British teammate in the Japanese team Elfyn Evans, who finished 5th in the special on Thursday.
