Toyota’s Sébastien Ogier claimed a superb victory at Rally Japan on Sunday and also secured maximum points from Super Sunday. Championship leader Elfyn Evans tried to challenge Ogier on the final day but had to settle for second place.
Evans retained his lead in the standings, but Ogier closed to within just three points of his Welsh team-mate – setting up a thrilling fight for the title in the final round of the season.
Toyota’s Kalle Rovanperä still has a mathematical chance of winning the championship, but a third world title for the Finn would require nothing short of a miracle. Rovanperä finished sixth in Japan, scoring 14 points.
He now trails the leader by 24 points heading into the Saudi Arabian round. In practice, both Evans and Ogier would need to suffer major setbacks in Saudi Arabia for Rovanperä to take the crown. The maximum points haul from a single rally is 35.
Hyundai’s Ott Tänak lost his final hopes of the title in Japan. The Estonian finished fourth and is now 59 points adrift of the top.
Check the full World Rally Championship standings here!
Hyundai’s Thierry Neuville and Adrien Fourmaux left Japan empty-handed after retiring from the event. Toyota’s Takamoto Katsuta also salvaged just one point from his home rally following Saturday’s troubles.
Toyota’s Sami Pajari, meanwhile, took the best result of his career by finishing third. He remains eighth in the standings but is now only two points behind Fourmaux.
The season-ending Rally Saudi Arabia will take place from 26 to 29 November.
