Toyota to fight for WRC title without Rovanpera in Japan

Rally Japan has revealed its entry list for the World Rally Championship title decider

Toyota will fight for the World Rally Championship manufacturers’ crown at Rally Japan season decider without Kalle Rovanpera.

Rally Japan has released its entry list for next month’s (21-24 November) title decider confirming that Toyota will field three GR Yaris Rally1 entries.

Toyota’s bid to overhaul Hyundai and claim a fourth consecutive WRC manufacturers’ crown will be led by full-time drivers Elfyn Evans and home hero Takamoto Katsuta, while the third car will be piloted by eight-time world champion Sebastien Ogier.

Two-time world champion Rovanpera will be absent from the Japanese team’s roster at its home event as the Finn has completed the half-season of events he was contracted to contest this year.

After claiming back-to-back world titles last year, the Finn opted to scale back to a partial campaign this year ahead of a full-time return in 2025. Rovanpera has contested seven of the 13 events this season, taking four wins in Kenya, Poland, Latvia and Chile to boost Toyota’s championship hopes.

Toyota will head to Japan facing a 15-point deficit to rivals Hyundai as the Korean marque aims to seal its first manufacturers’ crowns since 2020.

Hyundai will also field its customary three i20 N Rally1 entries driven by Thierry Neuville and Ott Tanak, who will contest the drivers;’ title, with the former holding a 25-point lead.

The third car will be driven by Andreas Mikkelsen in what will be his fifth event of the season.

M-Sport-Ford will field a pair of Puma Rally1 cars for Adrien Fourmaux and Gregoire Munster.

A total of 44 cars will tackle the event which will also decide the WRC2 title. Toyota’s Sami Pajari needed to finish first or second to beat current points leader Oliver Solberg to the crown.

World champion Auriol to make WRC return

Japan will also mark the return of 1994 world champion Didier Auriol, who will compete in a WRC event for the first time since the 2005 Monte Carlo Rally.

Auriol will drive a modified road-going Toyota GR Yaris prepared by Japanese team Fit-Easy Racing and will compete in the national class, driving alongside long-time co-driver Denis Giraudet.

The Frenchman’s WRC return arrives 30 years after he guided a Toyota Celica GT-Four ST205 to the 1994 WRC title with co-driver Bernard Occelli.