With this position, Neuville now holds four provisional championship points. While this isn’t yet enough to secure his first WRC title, he only needs two more points on Sunday to be crowned champion.
“It’s still a long day tomorrow, let’s see. I am looking forward that is for sure. It has been a long, tough season so far. It hasn’t been easy this weekend. We fought back into the points, so let’s see what we can do,” Neuville summed up at the end of the day.
Hyundai’s Ott Tänak continues to lead the rally with a margin of over half a minute. Tänak, who is Neuville’s only rival for the championship, needs a perfect performance on Sunday, while Neuville would need to encounter bad luck for Tänak to claim the title. Following Tänak, Toyota’s Elfyn Evans is second, with Sebastien Ogier in third.
“It’s been a challenging rally, every year it always surprises. Extremely demanding but one more day to go. Our job is unfinished, we need to finish the job and bring all the points that are on the table,” Tänak stated.
“It will be an exciting day tomorrow, it will all count. Looking forward to the day, going to enjoy it and have fun with it and enjoy the battle,” Evans added.
Ford’s Adrien Fourmaux holds fourth place, trailing Ogier by 8.2 seconds. Toyota’s Takamoto Katsuta is fifth, followed by Ford’s Gregoire Munster.
Citroën’s Nikolay Gryazin leads the WRC2 class and sits eighth overall. Sami Pajari is second in WRC2, more than a minute and a half behind Gryazin. This position is enough for Pajari to secure the WRC2 title. Pajari has a comfortable gap of over 50 seconds to third-placed Hiroki Arai in the class.
“It’s been steady driving today. I’ve just been trying to keep it clean and between the ditches. No problems so far,” Pajari commented.
The rally concludes on Sunday with five special stages remaining.
Rally Japan standings after SS16/21:
| POS | Driver | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Ott Tänak | Hyundai | 2:39:48.0 |
| 2. | Elfyn Evans | Toyota | +38.0 |
| 3. | Sebastien Ogier | Toyota | +2:10.9 |
| 4. | Adrien Fourmaux | Ford | +2:19.1 |
| 5. | Takamoto Katsuta | Toyota | +2:25.2 |
| 6. | Gregoire Munster | Ford | +3:07.1 |
| 7. | Thierry Neuville | Hyundai | +7:43.7 |
| 8. | Nikolay Gryazin | Citroen | +7:55.9 |
| 9. | Sami Pajari | Toyota | +9:21.2 |
| 10. | Hiroki Arai | Skoda | +10:12.6 |
| 11. | Heikki Kovalainen | Toyota | +10:42.0 |
| 12. | Gus Greensmith | Skoda | +11:23.9 |
| 13. | Chris Ingram | Toyota | +11:50.6 |
Rally Japan itinerary (CET):
Thursday 21 November
01.01 Shakedown: Kuragaike Park (2.75 km)
11.05 SS1: Toyota Stadium SSS 1 (2.15 km)
Friday, 22 November
23:44 SS2: Isegami's Tunnel 1 (23.67 km)
00:44 SS3: Inabu / Shitara 1 (19.38 km)
02:12 SS4: Shinshiro 1 (17.41 km)
04:27 Tyre fitting zone (15 min)
05:32 SS5: Isegami's Tunnel 2 (23.67 km)
06:32 SS6: Inabu / Shitara 2 (19.38 km)
08:00 SS7: Shinshiro 2 (17.41 km)
10:35 SS8: Okazaki SSS 1 (2.54 km)
10:44 SS9: Okazaki SSS 2 (2.54 km)
Saturday, 23 November
00:05 SS10: Mt. Kasagi 1 (16.47 km)
01:03 SS11: Nenoue Kougen 1 (11.60 km)
02:16 SS12: Ena 1 (22.79 km)
04:04 Tyre fitting zone (15 min)
05:05 SS13: Mt. Kasagi 2 (16.47 km)
06:08 SS14: Nenoue Kougen 2 (11.60 km)
07:16 SS15: Ena 2 (22.79 km)
10:07 Service (45 min)
11:05 SS16: Toyota Stadium SSS 2 (2.15 km)
Sunday, 24 November
23:39 SS17: Nukata 1 (20.23 km)
00:35 SS18: Lake Mikawako 1 (13.98 km)
01:38 SS19: Nukata 2 (20.23 km)
03:49 Service (15 min)
04:17 SS20: Toyota Stadium SSS 3 (2.15 km)
06:15 SS21: Lake Mikawako 2 (13.98 km) Power Stage
