This week, the campaign continues on Japan’s asphalt roads, and at the end of November, the final round of the season will take place in Saudi Arabia.
See the current championship standings here!
In theory, the name of this season’s world champion could already be known after Japan, but only Toyota’s Elfyn Evans has the chance to secure the title there. It would be the Welshman’s first world championship.
However, it is more likely that the title will be decided in the final round in Saudi Arabia.
Evans could only seal the championship in Japan if he collects 23 more points than his team-mates Sébastien Ogier and Kalle Rovanperä. After Japan, his lead would therefore need to be 36 points for the title to be confirmed.
At the moment, Evans leads the drivers’ standings by 13 points over Ogier and Rovanperä. He has accumulated 247 points, while both Ogier and Rovanperä have 234 points each.
Hyundai’s Ott Tänak still has a theoretical chance of the championship, but the Estonian would need something close to a miracle to achieve it. Most likely, Tänak will drop out of the title fight completely after Japan, since he would need to score at least 16 points more than Evans there to keep even a mathematical chance of the championship alive.
Evans is now in an excellent position to claim the first title of his career. He is expected to enjoy the best possible road position in Japan – an event that has suited him extremely well in recent years. Evans celebrated victory in Rally Japan in both 2023 and 2024, and now he is aiming for a hat-trick in the “Land of the Rising Sun.”
