He made up for that by winning the next three Paris-Dakar rallies, the last coming for Citroen in 1991. His second win in 1989, however, was controversial. Now partnering Jacky Ickx at Peugeot, the pair took control of the event in their 405 T16s with Ickx narrowly ahead. After stage 11 team boss Jean Todt decided his drivers should no longer race each other for the win, and notoriously decided which of them should get to win by tossing a coin.
Vatanen won the toss, but fortune now made a mockery of Todt’s decision. Vatanen went off on the penultimate stage of the rally and Ickx resumed the lead. And so on the final stage Ickx slowed down, handing victory back to Vatanen as per Todt’s insistence.