The team had claimed victory in every rally so far this season, but in Greece, the streak was broken. It was Hyundai’s Ott Tänak who ended Toyota’s run, dominating the scorching-hot weekend from start to finish.
Despite that, Toyota still came away with a solid result considering the conditions, and their lead in the manufacturers’ championship didn’t take a significant hit.
Juha Kankkunen, who once again stepped in as Toyota’s team principal for the rally, seemed pleased with the outcome. Things could have gone much worse.
“I’m very happy about that. They, of course, wanted to win all the rallies this year. But, you know, things happen, and it was a good fight,” Kankkunen said.
Tänak, however, drove a stunning rally. Not even Sébastien Ogier could match the Estonian’s pace this time.
“Ott did a fantastic job and was faster. I mean, it was just a fantastic drive—for Seb as well. But overall, the result for us was really good,” Kankkunen added.
Toyota couldn’t dominate in Greece the way it had earlier in the season, but the rally still ended on a high note. Ogier won the Power Stage and Kalle Rovanperä finished second.
“On Sunday, first and second on the Power Stage – I can’t complain, because it was only four points less than Hyundai today. So I’m very happy about the performance of the boys,” Kankkunen smiled.
