Sébastien Ogier won Rally Chile and climbed to the top of the standings

Ogier fought his way into the battle for victory on Saturday and, through consistent and solid driving, moved into the lead on Sunday. Ogier completed a brilliant hat-trick in Chile, as he also won Super Sunday and the Power Stage.

Claiming his fifth win of the season, Ogier eventually beat his team-mate Elfyn Evans by 11 seconds. At the same time, the Frenchman – chasing his ninth world title – rose to the top of the drivers’ championship, two points ahead of Evans.

Check WRC Standing here!

“This was the result of many factors. Vincent (co-driver Landais) did a perfect job and the team always provides me with the tools to win. So thank you, lads! And by the way, we’re now number one,” Ogier said, referring to Toyota becoming the most successful manufacturer of all time.

“Of course, we naturally wanted more, but we can be relatively satisfied with this,” Evans commented.

Hyundai’s weekend turned sour once again. The best-placed Hyundai driver was Adrien Fourmaux, who finished third. The Frenchman, who led the rally after Friday, ended up 46.5 seconds behind Ogier.

Toyota’s Sami Pajari delivered a superb performance but was narrowly beaten on the Power Stage by Hyundai’s Thierry Neuville, who edged him by 1.2 seconds. The final gap between the pair was just 4.4 seconds. Finishing fifth overall, Pajari recorded his best rally of the season.

“I suspected it wouldn’t be quite enough, but we tried to put pressure on him in case he made a mistake. A fair fight. We caught up a lot, but couldn’t quite get past,” Pajari summed up.

Toyota’s Kalle Rovanperä finished sixth. The Finn was also behind Pajari on the Power Stage but managed to stay ahead of Adrien Fourmaux by just 0.1 seconds. Rovanperä’s title hopes took a major blow after he suffered a puncture on Friday following a driving error, which dropped him well down the order. Saturday initially looked promising for the Finn, but once the roads dried, his chances of a proper comeback faded.

“We didn’t get anything good out of this weekend either. A lot of points wasted again,” Rovanperä lamented.

In terms of Super Sunday points, Elfyn Evans was second and Rovanperä third. Sami Pajari secured an excellent fourth place in the Sunday points, while the unlucky Ott Tänak took the final point.

Toyota’s Oliver Solberg won the WRC2 category and, at the same time, secured his first-ever WRC2 title. In Chile, he beat Nikolai Gryazin by 40.4 seconds. The WRC2 crown was Solberg’s main goal for the season, and now he is eyeing the top class.

“I want to thank everyone. Toyota, my family, my fiancée, Elliott and all those who believed in me. It hasn’t been a bad year – an emotional one,” said a delighted Solberg at the finish line as the new champion.

The World Rally Championship continues after mid-October in Central Europe.

Rally Chile results:

Super Sunday results:

Rally Chile itinerary (CET):

Thursday 11 September

14:01 Shakedown: Conuco (6.79 km)

Friday 12 September

13:15 SS1: Pulpería 1 (19.72 km)
14:10 SS2: Rere 1 (13.34 km)
15:01 SS3: San Rosendo 1 (23.32 km)
17:56 Service (40 min)
19:41 SS4: Pulpería 2 (19.72 km)
20:36 SS5: Rere 2 (13.34 km)
21:27 SS6: San Rosendo 2 (23.32 km)

Saturday 13 September

14:07 SS7: Pelún 1 (15.65 km)
15:01 SS8: Lota 1 (25.64 km)
16:05 SS9: María Las Cruces 1 (28.31 km)
18:25 Service (40 min)
20:07 SS10: Pelún 2 (15.65 km)
21:01 SS11: Lota 2 (25.64 km)
22:05 SS12: María Las Cruces 2 (28.31 km)

Sunday 14 September

13:23 SS13: Laraquete 1 (18.62 km)
14:35 SS14: BioBío 1 (8.78 km)
15:35 SS15: Laraquete 2 (18.62 km)
18:15 SS16: BioBío 2 (8.78 km) *Power Stage