Kalle Rovanperä’s victory at the Central Europe Rally completely reshaped the World Rally Championship drivers’ standings and leaves everything open heading into the final two rounds. Unsurprisingly, Toyota sealed their fifth consecutive manufacturers’ title.
The WRC returned to Europe for a distinctive rally spanning three countries: Austria, Germany, and the Czech Republic. The 12th round of the season featured 18 asphalt stages totalling 306 km, with widely varying characteristics — fast and flowing in the Czech hills, and technical and slippery through Bavaria’s forest roads. Some WRC drivers have described it as the most challenging asphalt rally of the year.
Even before the action began, the rally world was stunned by Kalle Rovanperä’s announcement that he will retire from full-time WRC competition at the end of the season. At just 25 years old, the Finn, who has been rallying since he was 15, is seeking new challenges. In 2026, he will compete in Japan’s Super Formula with Toyota — perhaps with his sights set on Formula 1.
Rovanperä adapted best to the changing grip levels and claimed his third victory of the year, strengthening his chances of securing a third world title before bidding farewell to the WRC. Toyota once again dominated — losing only one rally this season to Hyundai — and celebrated another milestone by locking out the top two positions.
The opening leg, featuring only two stages, served as a warm-up for the days ahead. Sébastien Ogier set the early pace and ended the day with a 1.6-second lead over Rovanperä. Toyota’s frontrunners continued to dictate the tempo during the second leg, with a tenth-of-a-second duel between two men who share ten world titles between them! Elfyn Evans, in third, was already 29.5 seconds behind.
The third leg was once again controlled by Toyota’s drivers. The battle for the lead between Ogier and Rovanperä came to a dramatic halt on Stage 10 when the Frenchman crashed. Running flat-out in fifth gear, Ogier went off the road due to an undetected slow puncture — his first retirement of the year, compromising his title hopes. “We had a front-left puncture, but as the sensor wasn’t working, I didn’t know about it. I only realised when I reached an easy corner and the car just wouldn’t turn. We went into a ditch and hit a tree,” Ogier explained.
Rovanperä began the leg 0.6 seconds behind Ogier and ended it with a commanding 36.3-second advantage over Ott Tänak, with Evans 44.7 seconds adrift — meaning the focus shifted to the battle for second. “It was a good day,” said the Finn. “The afternoon was a bit trickier in terms of feeling, but everything went well. Tomorrow’s fight will be very close,” he added.
The final leg offered extra excitement with Super Sunday and Power Stage points on the line. Sébastien Ogier, pushing hard, won every stage to claim 10 bonus points. Rovanperä managed his lead to perfection: “It was great to be back on asphalt. The pace Séb and I had was much quicker than the others. Congratulations to everyone — winning the manufacturers’ championship again proves we are the best team. Everyone’s working so hard, so thank you. The drivers’ title won’t be easy, but we’ve improved our chances with this result, and we’ll try to keep it going in Japan,” said Rovanperä.
Toyota’s dominance was further reinforced by Elfyn Evans, who snatched second place from Tänak on the final stage after a fierce duel.
The drivers’ championship is now more tightly contested than ever. Evans holds a 13-point lead over Ogier and Rovanperä, with 70 points still available. Tänak sits 50 points behind and remains only mathematically in contention. With 11 wins from 12 rallies, Toyota secured their ninth manufacturers’ crown — and fifth in a row — now just one shy of record-holders Lancia.
In Rally2, world champion Oliver Solberg (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2) dominated from the opening stage, securing another victory ahead of Jan Cerný (Škoda Fabia RS Rally2). Mille Johansson (Ford Fiesta Rally3) pulled off a stunning comeback on the final leg to claim the Junior WRC title by just 1.6 seconds after a thrilling duel with Taylor Gill (Ford Fiesta Rally3).
The WRC is now entering its final stretch. Next up is Rally Japan (6–9 November), featuring 20 asphalt stages (305 km), followed by the debut of Rally Saudi Arabia (26–29 November), with 17 gravel stages (319.4 km).
Final Classification
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Kalle Rovanperä / Jonne Halttunen (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) – 2h 36m 20.1s
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Elfyn Evans / Scott Martin (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) – +43.7s
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Ott Tänak / Martin Järveoja (Hyundai i20 N Rally1) – +49.3s
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Takamoto Katsuta / Aaron Johnston (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) – +1m 06.8s
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Adrien Fourmaux / Alexandre Coria (Hyundai i20 N Rally1) – +2m 04.3s
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Sami Pajari / Marko Salminen (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) – +2m 13.9s
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Joshua McErlean / Eoin Treacy (Ford Puma Rally1) – +5m 48.8s
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Oliver Solberg / Elliott Edmondson (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2) – +8m 56.2s (1st WRC2)
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Jan Cerný / Ondrej Krajca (Škoda Fabia RS Rally2) – +10m 51.1s
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Filip Mareš / Radovan Bucha (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2) – +11m 21.2s
Drivers’ Championship
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Elfyn Evans (Toyota) – 247 pts
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Sébastien Ogier (Toyota) – 234 pts
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Kalle Rovanperä (Toyota) – 234 pts
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Ott Tänak (Hyundai) – 197 pts
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Thierry Neuville (Hyundai) – 166 pts
Manufacturers’ Championship
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Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT – 632 pts
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Hyundai World Rally Team – 464 pts
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M-Sport Ford World Rally Team – 176 pts
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Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT2 – 127 pts