Kalle Rovanpera is preparing a staged return to competition after the inner-ear condition that sidelined the two-time World Rally champion for most of the year, with Toyota targeting a full comeback in 2027.
The 25-year-old Finn was diagnosed with benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, a balance disorder that first struck during a post-season Super Formula test in December 2025 and ultimately forced him to withdraw from the 2026 single-seater campaign in March. He has spent the months since recovering at KHU, the Finnish institute for high-performance sport in Jyvaskyla, which has now cleared him to begin driving again.
"With his recovery progressing well, he has already resumed physical training and can now look forward to a phased return to driving," Toyota Gazoo Racing said in a statement, adding that the time away had let "Kalle take time to recover and focus on his health." The team said it is now mapping out what comes next with the driver: "Together, Kalle and TGR are now planning the next steps in his racing programme with the objective of returning to competitive racing in 2027."
The update marks a clear shift in tone from March, when Rovanpera stepped back with no timeline and a frank admission that he could not race safely. "My health doesn't allow me to continue safely at the moment," he said then, while insisting the move was a pause rather than an ending: "My chapter in circuit racing isn't finished." He thanked those around him: "I'm grateful to Morizo, TGR and my partners for their care and standing by me."
That support was returned publicly by Toyota chairman Akio Toyoda - who races under the alias Morizo - when the layoff was announced. "His body was struggling to keep up," Toyoda said of the driver who had walked away from a dominant rallying career to chase a circuit-racing dream. "His circuit racing challenge is far from over." He went further on his personal commitment: "I will continue to stay by his side - not only as a fellow driver, but as a team-mate."
Rovanpera won WRC titles in 2022 and 2023 before stepping away from a full rally programme to test himself in single-seaters. Where the phased return slots him - whether through Super Formula, a rallying comeback, or both - has yet to be confirmed, but for the first time since December the direction is forward.
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*Originally published on [Motorsports Global](https://motorsports.global/article/rovanpera-plans-phased-return-to-racing-after-vertigo-battle). Visit for full coverage.*
