WRC: Toyota Gazoo Racing Achieves a Dream 1-2-3 Victory in Japan

They literally achieved a complete podium sweep, with three of their crews taking the top three positions. In doing so, the team not only celebrated a major victory on home soil but also wrapped up a highly successful season, in style!

Elfyn Evans took the win ahead of world champions Sébastien Ogier and Kalle Rovanperä.

The victory for Evans and his co-driver Scott Martin was their third of the season and marked the ninth win out of the thirteen WRC events in which the TOYOTA GAZOO Racing World Rally Team competed. The team had already secured the manufacturers’ title in the eleventh round in Chile, while in the following event Kalle Rovanperä and Jonne Halttunen sealed their second drivers’ and co-drivers’ championships respectively.

This was the WRC’s second visit to the demanding asphalt roads in the mountains of the Aichi and Gifu prefectures surrounding Toyota City. Heavy rainfall played a key role in shaping the final outcome right from the early stages of the rally. It was there that Evans laid the foundations for a great season-ending victory.

With consecutive stage wins in the opening tests, he built up a lead of nearly one minute and 50 seconds over his teammates, who faced various issues. On Saturday and Sunday, the unsettled weather didn’t trouble Evans, who maintained his pace to reach the finish on Sunday afternoon in first place, a result that also secured him the runner-up spot in the championship.

Ogier, on the other hand, had been close to Evans’ pace in the opening stages, but a minor off on Friday afternoon widened the gap. Rovanperä, who was first on the road in the tricky conditions of Rally Japan, fell behind early in the standings. Both, however, chose to focus on maximizing the team’s overall result rather than their own positions in the challenging conditions.

Japanese TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Challenge Program driver Takamoto Katsuta once again impressed on his home roads. His hopes for a podium finish ended after going off the road, but he still managed to win more stages than any other driver in the rally and finished fifth, just 20 seconds shy of fourth place.

After the end of the rally, Toyota Motor Corporation Chairman Akio Toyoda said:

“To nurture rally culture through continuous improvement in the Japanese way” and “to make the rally a meaningful autumn tradition in Japan”, these were the things I wished for after last year’s Rally Japan. This year’s event made all of that a reality.

What impressed me most was that we were able to use Toyota Stadium as one of the special stages. I believe the powerful performances of the rally cars will stay in the memories of children for years to come.

Kalle, Elfyn, Takamoto, and Jari-Matti all became rally drivers because they were close to the sport from a young age. Personally, I fell in love with motorsport because my father often took me to racetracks when I was a child. If we continue holding events like this, I’m sure motorsport will become part of Japan’s culture and grow even more popular.”