The Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT heads into this weekend’s 59th Vodafone Rally of Portugal with a comfortable early season cushion in both the WRC Manufacturers’ and Drivers’ Championships.
The Japanese manufacturer has won each of the five rounds of the series so far with four different drivers and already has a 98-point cushion over the Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT. Welshman Elfyn Evans won round two in Sweden and has a two-point lead over team-mate Takamoto Katuta, the winner of successive rallies in Kenya and Croatia.
Five of the 11 Rally1 cars in Portugal are Toyotas, with Monte-Carlo winner Oliver Solberg being joined by record-breaking seven-time Portugal winner and record-equalling nine-time WRC champion Sébastien Ogier. Finland’s Sami Pajari drives the fifth car under the Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT2 banner.
Yet again, Evans is the early season WRC leader but the Welshman is yet to secure a maiden world title. Retirements in Keyna and Croatia have proved expensive already this season, although Evans did finish second in Monte-Carlo and Gran Canaria to add to his Swedish success.
The 2021 winner of the Rally of Portugal said: “We took a good haul of points away from Rally Islas Canarias which was positive for the championship, even if it does mean we need to open the road again in Portugal this year. Usually, it’s an event where the road position is a factor, but we’ve run first there a few times now over recent years, so it’s nothing we’re not used to or prepared for. We also know that the weather can be changeable, as it was for our pre-event test this week.”
Katsuta is feeling confident and enjoys the event in Portugal. The Japanese said: “Portugal is a rally I really like: the atmosphere is always amazing, the stages suit me quite well and we’ve had some good results there in the past. Even though I will not be running first on the road this time, to be second can still be quite tricky, and this year’s route could be quite demanding in this respect, with proper gravel stages already on Thursday as well as Friday.”
Pajari is currently third in the Drivers’ Championship after securing four consecutive podium finishes, while Solberg is four points behind in fourth after a disappointing set of results to follow up his famous maiden success in Monte-Carlo. The Swede won the WRC2 category in 2025 with a Yaris Rally2 and is determined to bounce back on gravel after a premature retirement on Gran Canaria.
Frenchman Adrien Fourmaux is the leading Hyundai factory driver in fifth in the points’ standings. His best result of the season was second place at the Safari Rally but the i20 N driver has a strong track record on gravel and is focused on turning around the Korean manufacturer’s fortunes.
Fourmaux said: “The season really starts now in Portugal, because it’s a different surface to everything that has come before. Testing has been good and we are much more comfortable and confident with the pace on gravel. I like Portugal and I’ve always been competitive here but I’ve been unlucky with punctures or technical issues in the past.”
Fourmaux is just a point ahead of Toyota’s Ogier, who is tackling a part-time programme of WRC events. The nine-time champion is the most successful driver in the history of the Rally of Portugal and could well be the pre-event favourite for the win, particularly after securing his 68th career WRC success in Gran Canaria two weeks ago.
Thierry Neuville managed to win the World Championship for the first time in 2024 but the Belgian has not made the best of starts to his 2026 campaign. He is seventh in the points’ standings and already trails leader Evans by 46 points.
Neuville said: “I have lots of memories in Portugal, including it being one of my first events in Junior WRC in 2010 – and a couple of podiums and a win too (2018). It’s a tough event. The most difficult thing is managing the differences in stage profiles across the three of four days. You have more abrasive and rough stages but also smooth and sandy ones. This year there will be a complete mix of both on every single day!”
Veteran Spaniard Dani Sordo returns to WRC action to drive the third of the Hyundais. He will be aiming to continue the team’s run of 11 podium finishes at the event.
Sordo picked up just six points from his last event in the Canaries. He said: “My goal is clear: to bring home a good result for the team and fight for the podium at a minimum. We did one day of gravel testing and the feeling is completely different. We are confident we have a good car for gravel and we’ll be much more competitive than we were in the Canaries.”
The M-Sport Ford WRT has yet to find the winning formula in this year’s championship and team drivers Jon Armstrong and Josh McErlean languish in 13th and 20th positions in the Drivers’ Championship after five rounds. They are joined in Portugal by Latvian youngster Märtinš Sesks for the first time since Rally Sweden.
The Blue Oval knows the challenges that await, particularly on Friday, where only a midday remote service is available, making set-up decisions and mechanical reliability critical from the outset.
Armstrong said: "Looking forward to the first proper gravel rally of the year. I've done the rally a couple of times in the past and it's always a big challenge; some rough action, some very soft sand, and I'm sure after our preparation that it'll be really fun with the Puma. Hopefully we can make use of a good start position to try and have a solid run."
McErlean finished eighth overall in Portugal last year, while Sesks was 15th and hopes to learn from mistakes made in 2025. The Latvian said: “Portugal was a tough exam last year. There were a lot of things we didn’t get right and I think it will be interesting to see how we will do this year.”
Competitive action gets underway this Wednesday with the all-important 5.72km Shakedown stage at Baltar.
Rally1 crews will be permitted several passes through the challenging gravel stage to finalise the set-up for the weekend’s action. The Shakedown fires into life at 15.01hrs.
2026 Vodafone Rally of Portugal – Rally1 crews
18. Takamoto Katsuta (JPN)/Aaron Johnston (IRL) Toyota GR Yaris Rally1
33. Elfyn Evans (GBR)/Scott Martin (GBR) Toyota GR Yaris Rally1
99. Oliver Solberg (SWE)/ Elliott Edmondson (GBR) Toyota GR Yaris Rally1
5. Sami Pajari (FIN)/Marko Salminen (FIN) Toyota GR Yaris Rally1
16. Adrien Fourmaux (FRA)/Alexandre Coria (FRA) Hyundai i20 N Rally1
1. Sébastien Ogier (FRA)/Vincent Landais (FRA) Toyota GR Yaris Rally1
11. Thierry Neuville (BEL)/Martijn Wydaeghe (BEL) Hyundai i20 N Rally1
95. Jon Armstrong (GBR)/Shane Byrne (IRL) Ford Puma Rally1
55. Joshua McErlean (IRL)/Eoin Treacy (IRL) Ford Puma Rally1
22. Märtinš Sesks (LAT)/Renars Francis (LAT) Ford Puma Rally1
6. Dani Sordo (ESP)/Candido Carrera (ESP) Hyundai i20 N Rally1
2026 FIA World Rally Championship – driver´s position after round 5
1. Elfyn Evans (GBR) 101pts
2. Takamoto Katsuta (JPN) 99pts
3. Sami Pajari (FIN) 72pts
4. Oliver Solberg (SWE) 68pts
5. Adrien Fourmaux (FRA) 59pts
6. Sébastien Ogier (FRA) 58pts
7. Thierry Neuville (BEL) 55pts
8. Esapekka Lappi (FIN) 21pts
9. Yohan Rossel (FRA) 20pts
10. Leó Rossel (FRA) 18pts
2026 FIA Manufacturers’ Championship – positions after round 5:
1. Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT 265pts
2. Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT 167pts
3. Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT2 75pts
4. M-Sport Ford WRT 63pts