WRC Rally Italy Sardinia set for three-way title shootout, first-time champ

Whatever the outcome of the FIA World Rally Championship’s season-closing Rally Italy Sardinia this weekend, it’s going to be a new name celebrating a WRC drivers’ title.

Three drivers who’ve yet to taste WRC drivers’ championship success will make it an all-Toyota fight for the crown when Sardinia’s all-gravel event brings the WRC season to a truncated finish following the cancellation of Rally Saudi Arabia.

The Toyota Gazoo Racing trio of Elfyn Evans (pictured above heading to a points-protecting fifth last time out in Chile), Sami Pajari and Oliver Solberg are separated by just 21 points heading into a shootout on one of the WRC’s most unforgiving events. With a maximum of 35 points still up for grabs on the Mediterranean island, all three remain in contention to become first-time champions. 

The season finale also marks the last competitive appearance of the current generation of Rally1 machinery, closing a five-year chapter before new technical regulations take effect in 2027. With next year’s performance levels in the top-tier class set to be closer to the current Rally2 cars, it’s a last chance for the leading crews to enjoy some of the quickest machinery in WRC history.   

Evans arrives in Alghero holding a 17-point advantage over Pajari, with Solberg a further four points behind. The Welshman has led the championship since April and can secure the crown by scoring 19 points in his GR Yaris Rally1, regardless of his rivals' results.

Championship leader Elfyn Evans has a 17-point advantage heading into Sardinia, but runs as first car on the road on Friday’s opening leg – not ideal for the Welshman.

But Sardinia presents a particularly demanding final hurdle for the five-time WRC runner-up. As the points leader, Evans will run as first car on the road on Friday, sweeping loose gravel from the surface for those behind him – an additional challenge on stages notorious for their abrasive surfaces, exposed rocks and narrow margins for error.

“I think especially with opening the road, normally in Sardinia it's a significant disadvantage to run first,” Evans explained. “So, with that in mind, it could be difficult.

“I think we still have to go there as if it was any other round and ignore the championship situation. You can't really afford to [think about the lead].”

His championship rivals arrive with momentum of their own. Pajari transformed his season with three consecutive victories in Estonia, Finland and Paraguay, while Solberg reignited his title ambitions with a commanding victory on Rally Chile last time out.

Pajari admits a “small piece of luck” may be needed for the 24-year-old Finnish phenom to land the title in just his second season in Rally1 machinery.  

“It’s a tricky rally,” he said, “and we’ve seen many times that there can be some tire issue or other things that can go wrong, so it’s normally not too straightforward. I hope we can do the best job we can with my driving and with the car, but we also need to have this small piece of luck on our side.

Solberg, who won the WRC2 title last year and was promoted to a full-time Rally1 seat with Toyota’s factory fleet for 2026, knows he has the biggest points deficit to overturn, but is determined to take the fight to his teammates.

“It’s a big gap to Elfyn to try to close in one rally, but we will give it everything of course,” said the Swede, who arrives with the knowledge from winning WRC2 in Sardinia last year. “We had that good run to win the WRC2 class last year and, going up a level this time around, we just have to aim for the top step once more and see what happens.”

Sitting 21 points behind Toyota teammate Elfyn Evans, Oliver Solberg will be aiming for the top step of the podium and hoping his title rivals flounder. Red Bull Content Pool

While Toyota has already secured a record-equaling 10th overall and sixth consecutive WRC manufacturers’ crown after a dominant season (winning 11 rallies so far to Hyundai’s one), its drivers’ title contenders will not have the fight for the rally victory all to themselves.

Staying within the factory Toyota camp, reigning Sardinia winner Sebastien Ogier returns in search of a record-extending sixth triumph on the island. The nine-time – and reigning, until this weekend – champ will also make history when he begins his 214th WRC event, surpassing Jari-Matti Latvala's all-time starts record.

Takamoto Katsuta will be looking for a strong showing in the fifth of the factory GR Yaris Rally1s. After two early-season wins in Kenya and Croatia put him in the title frame, a shocking run of recent results has dashed his title hopes. But there’s pride to play for, so expect the Japanese driver to push from the start.

Hyundai, which has claimed seven victories in Sardinia, brings full-season drivers Thierry Neuville and Adrien Fourmaux, plus two-time event winner Dani Sordo. In only his fourth start of the 2026 campaign, Sordo will have his pacenotes called by fellow Spaniard Patricia Saiz who’s making her Rally1 debut. Neuville is a three-time Sardinia winner, while Fourmaux is looking to better four 2026 podiums in his i20 N Rally1 by landing a first career WRC win. 

M-Sport Ford completes the Rally1 field with a trio of Puma Rally1s for regulars Josh McErlean and Jon Armstrong and potent part-timer Martins Sesks.

Behind the fight for the overall win in Sardinia, the WRC2 drivers’ title is already decided, but there will be no shortage of competition when newly crowned champ Robert Virves heads a strong line-up of Rally2 machinery on the island’s gravel stages.  

Virves was confirmed as the WRC2 champion with the cancellation of November’s Saudi Arabian finale. The subsequent adjustment to the class's counted-scores system put the Estonian beyond the reach of his remaining rivals.

Four class victories in Kenya, Greece, Estonia and Finland, followed by second place in Chile last time out, have built an outstanding campaign for the Toksport-run driver, who’ll be looking to round off his season with a fifth victory aboard his Skoda Fabia RS.

Saudi Arabia’s cancellation has already handed Robert Virves the WRC2 crown. The Estonian has banked four 2026 wins (above, No. 4 in Paraguay), but will be pushing hard for a fifth in Sardinia. Red Bull Content Pool

But with a stacked field featuring former champions and proven rally winners, there’s little prospect of an easy finish. Among his closest challengers are Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 drivers Roope Korhonen and Teemu Suninen, who remain firmly in contention for the championship runner-up position.

Korhonen has been one of Virves' closest rivals throughout the campaign, while Suninen arrives in Sardinia having recently secured the FIA European Rally Championship title. The former Rally1 driver has also enjoyed a consistent WRC2 campaign, recording victory in Portugal and three runner-up finishes.

The Finnish pair begin the finale third and fourth in the standings respectively, behind the absent Yohan Rossel – the Lancia driver having completed his full slate of events – with both capable of moving into second place.

For its 2026 running, Rally Italy Sardinia returns to Alghero and moves from its traditional early summer slot to October, raising the possibility of cooler temperatures and more unpredictable weather. Crews face 17 special stages covering 190.77 competitive miles, beginning with Thursday evening’s short 1.29-mile Ittiri Arena Show stage. Friday and Saturday take the action onto the island's demanding inland gravel roads before Sunday's four-stage finale, where the championship will ultimately be settled on the scenic and spectacular Sassari-Argentiera Wolf Power Stage, a 4.41-mile test finishing beside the Mediterranean coast.

• Catch WRC action from all rounds of the 2026 FIA World Rally Championship on RACER Network and the RACER+ App. Tune in on Monday, Oct. 5 at 9.00pm ET for full highlights from Rally Italy Sardinia.  

• RACER Network is also your home for the WRC Magazine show, with new episodes landing on the Thursday before every WRC event. Get up to speed for the Rally Italy Sardinia title-decider at 7.30pm ET on Thursday, Oct. 1.   

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