Introduction
After years of coming so close, Elfyn Evans and co-driver Scott Martin are finally world rally champions. The Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team crew sealed the 2026 FIA World Rally Championship title at the season finale, Rally Italia Sardegna, on October 4, driving the Toyota GR Yaris Rally1.
It was one of the closest title fights in years, with three Toyota crews still in the hunt on the last day and the outcome decided on the final stage.
A Three-Way Fight Inside One Team
Evans arrived in Sardinia, the first time the island hosted the WRC finale, with a 17-point lead over Sami Pajari and a 21-point lead over Oliver Solberg, both also in GR Yaris Rally1 cars. Starting first on the road on Friday was a disadvantage on the loose gravel, and Solberg took the rally lead on Saturday morning.
By Sunday the gap between Evans and Solberg was only six points, so the bonus points for Super Sunday and the Power Stage would decide everything.
Decided on the Power Stage
Evans then suffered a puncture on the second run through the Osilo – Tergu stage and lost close to two minutes. That dropped him out of the Sunday points, and he started the Power Stage with a virtual lead of just one point.
Solberg was faster at the early split times, but he went off the road near the end of the stage. He still won the rally, but he finished the Power Stage 8.9 seconds slower than Evans, and that handed the title to the Welsh driver. Evans finished the event fifth, and the final standings read:
- Elfyn Evans – 243 points
- Oliver Solberg – 238 points
- Sami Pajari – 237 points
History for Wales and for Toyota
Evans becomes the first Welsh world rally champion, joining Colin McRae and Richard Burns as British drivers’ champions, while Martin is the first English co-driver to take the title. The pair had finished runner-up in five of the previous six seasons, and they won two rallies in 2026, in Sweden and Japan.
For Toyota, it is the seventh drivers’ title for a TGR-WRT crew in eight years. The team had already won the manufacturers’ title in Chile. Solberg’s Sardinia win was also the 48th victory for the GR Yaris Rally1, and Toyota cars won 12 of the 13 rounds this season.
The End of an Era
Sardinia was also the final event of the GR Yaris Rally1’s last homologation season, as new technical rules arrive in 2027. Elsewhere on the results sheet, Sébastien Ogier scored a record 121st WRC podium, and Takamoto Katsuta made history this year as the first Japanese driver to lead the championship.
Final Thoughts
Few drivers have earned a title the hard way like Elfyn Evans. After five second places, his first crown came down to a single stage and a handful of seconds. It is a fitting farewell for the GR Yaris Rally1, a car that turned Toyota’s Japanese hot-hatch spirit into one of the most successful machines in modern rallying.
Photos: Toyota Gazoo Racing
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