WRC Preview: Rally Japan
- Olivia Kairu
- 4 hours ago
- 3 min read
The World Rally Championship (WRC) teams make a cross-continent jump from the punishing gravel roads of Portugal to the smooth yet grating asphalt of Toyota City and its nearby prefectures as they gear up for Round 7, Rally Japan.
For Toyota Gazoo Racing, snaking through the mountainous roads of Aichi and Gifu Prefectures, flanked by dense forest and lined with unforgiving barriers, carries the comfort of home, especially for local favourite Takamoto Katsuta.
The tyre-shredding terrain of Rally Portugal gave way to four different leaders across the four-day campaign. Ultimately, Hyundai Motorsport GmbH’s Thierry Neuville capitalised on heartbreak for Toyota’s Sébastien Ogier, whose charge toward victory unravelled with a right-rear puncture on the penultimate stage.
Neuville secured Hyundai’s first win of the season, injecting fresh life into both the drivers’ and manufacturers’ championship fights. What looked like a six-win sweep for Toyota quickly shifted the momentum in the championship with a roaring first finish for Hyundai.
Neuville reflected on the happenings that led to his victory, “I cannot believe it. I have never had such a nerve-wracking final few minutes of a rally in my career. It’s an amazing result, and I have to say thanks first of all to the team for everything they’ve done.”
“It has been an exciting but crazy rally from the start, so to come away with the victory is fantastic. We wanted to build up our momentum after Corsica, and this was the perfect way to do just that. To have the Power Stage win is just the icing on the cake and gives us a very important boost in the Drivers’ and Manufacturers’ Championship. We could not have asked for more.”
Championship leader Elfyn Evans completed the Portugal podium in third. The Welshman continues to score heavily even when outright victories have eluded him in recent rounds. Ogier, meanwhile, looks forward to bouncing back after the Portugal heartbreak that denied him what was set to be another masterclass victory.
“We had some tough luck today. At the beginning of this penultimate stage, it was very rutted, and there were some rocks in the line; I don’t think we could have done much differently. Everything that we could control this weekend, I think we did it pretty well, together with the team,” Ogier mentioned, reflecting on his weekend in Portugal.
“I think we all deserved better, but that’s rallying sometimes. Of course, when you put in so much effort, it’s frustrating, but we have to forget about it and go to Japan and look to get another win there.” Moving on to the next round. Although shaken by the recent Hyundai win, Toyota arrives in Japan firmly in control of the championship. The Japanese manufacturer will also benefit from a significant emotional boost, returning to home soil, where expectations from local fans are mounting.
Much of that attention will centre on Katsuta, who enters his home event equipped with two rally wins whilst also carrying both pressure and opportunity. The Japanese driver has flexed his driving ability throughout the season; now he sets his sights on a strong result on home roads.
“Rally Japan is, of course, a very important rally for me, and for our team,” Katsuta remarked.
“It will be exciting to see how the conditions will change now that the rally is taking place in a different season. It will be much warmer than usual, and with fewer leaves and better grip, the conditions could be quite nice.
“Still, there’s a chance for wet weather if the rainy season that we usually have in June arrives early. Of course, to win my home rally would be very nice but we are competing against many great drivers, including my team-mates. I will just focus on trying my best and enjoying the amazing feeling of driving our Rally1 car on Japanese roads.”
Rally Japan’s stages present a unique challenge unlike any other on the calendar, where narrow, twisty roads atop steep mountains leave no room for error. The repeated asphalt loops across the weekend place heavy importance on tyre strategy and rhythm, while weather could once again become a decisive factor should rain descend across the region.
With 20 stages spread out across over 302km, the rally kicks off with a loop of three stages in Toyota City. Saturday is the longest day with demanding mountain runs. Sunday concludes the event with two laps around Kuragaike, capping off with the Wolf Power Stage.
Edited by Vyas Ponnuri
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