F1 hopeful forced to pause career: 'My health doesn’t allow me to continue safely'

The Finn had decided to step away from rallying to pursue a career in single-seaters, starting from the junior categories with the dream of one day reaching Formula 1.

Rovanperä recently competed in Formula Regional Oceania, even securing a podium in New Zealand, and was also set to take part in the Japanese top-tier Super Formula season.

However, as he confirmed himself on social media, those plans will now not come to fruition: "I have difficult news to share. I will be stepping back from the upcoming races and my participation in this year’s Super Formula season. I’ve been working with medical issues for already a longer period, which have gotten worse this year. My health doesn’t allow me to continue safely at the moment. Now my first priority is to fix that.

He finally added: "I’m grateful to Morizo, TGR and my partners for their care and for standing by me, and I’ll keep working hard to come back stronger. Thank you for your understanding and your continued support."

A few months ago, Rovanperä had already opened up about his health struggles. Taking to social media, he explained that he had experienced symptoms of Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo, a condition affecting balance and vision through the inner ear.

He revealed that doctors had ruled him out of driving for the rest of the week, expressing his frustration at missing valuable track time, especially after only managing limited running during an aero test. Despite the setback, he remained focused on recovery, acknowledging it was simply a case of bad luck and that he would now have to wait for his next opportunity.