Reigning world champion Sébastien Ogier will, as expected, skip the season’s second round. Despite this, Toyota will field five Rally1 cars in Sweden, as Italian driver Lorenzo Bertelli has rented a Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 for the event.
Bertelli, a member of the Prada fashion family, last competed in the snowy Swedish WRC round in 2024, when he finished tenth in a Toyota.
Elfyn Evans, Oliver Solberg and Takamoto Katsuta will represent Toyota’s works team in Sweden. Sami Pajari will also compete in a Toyota, driving for the team’s second outfit.
Hyundai’s Esapekka Lappi will begin his season in Sweden alongside the team’s full-time drivers Thierry Neuville and Adrien Fourmaux. Making his return to the World Rally Championship, Lappi won the fast winter rally in Sweden in 2024.
M-Sport Ford will field Martins Sesks, whose seven-round WRC programme gets under way around Umeå. The core M-Sport line-up consists of Irish drivers Josh McErlean and Jon Armstrong.
Read more: WRC programme confirmed: Martins Sesks finally reveals his plans
In WRC2, a thrilling battle between Finnish drivers is on the cards. Roope Korhonen, who finished second in the WRC2 class in Sweden last year, will face competition from Mikko Heikkilä, Lauri Joona, Tuukka Kauppinen and Teemu Suninen, who returns to the WRC after a year away. Korhonen, Suninen and Kauppinen will compete in Toyota Rally2 cars, while Heikkilä and Joona will drive Škoda Rally2 machinery.
The Finnish drivers will also be challenged by Swedish prospects Isak Reiersen and Mille Johansson, the reigning JWRC champion. Among the Estonian drivers, Romet Jürgenson will also be targeting WRC2 success in Sweden. Notably absent from the entry list is Robert Virves, who had been expected to begin his WRC season at the second round.
The Junior WRC title battle will also get under way in Sweden. A total of seven drivers have entered the category: Turks Ali Türkkan and Kerem Kazaz, Irishman Craig Rahill, Sweden’s Calle Carlberg, Finland’s Leevi Lassila, and Spain’s Raul Hernandez and Gil Membrado.
Rally Sweden will be held from 12–15 February. The 2026 WRC season begins next week with Rally Monte Carlo.
