As expected, Toyota announced that Oliver Solberg will replace Kalle Rovanperä in the team for next season. Otherwise, the line-up remains the same as this year. Sébastien Ogier will once again contest a part-time season, and in addition to him, Toyota’s drivers next year will include Takamoto Katsuta, Elfyn Evans, and Sami Pajari.
The team will also continue under its familiar leadership. Jari-Matti Latvala remains as team principal, with Juha Kankkunen continuing in the role of deputy team principal.
Latvala, 40, competed this season in the European Historic Rally Championship and won the title. Kankkunen filled in whenever Latvala was behind the wheel. The same arrangement will continue next year.
Toyota’s current season has been exceptionally successful. The team secured its fifth consecutive manufacturers’ title already at the Central European Rally, and in Japan it was confirmed that the drivers’ championship will also go to a Toyota driver.
“There have been many happy moments, and of course some tougher phases too. But in the end, I’d say we’ve experienced many of those joyful moments. And sometimes, when you face difficulties, the feeling of success afterwards is even stronger. All that joy also comes from the fact that we stay strong together as a team,” Latvala enthused.
“It’s a pleasure to welcome Oliver to the driver line-up after the fantastic job he has done driving the GR Yaris Rally2 this year – and, of course, his amazing debut in our Rally1 car in Estonia. Along with Elfyn and Seb, who have both been driving extremely well in fighting for this year’s championship, as well as Takamoto, who’s shown this year that he can compete for victories, and Sami, who has been gaining valuable experience in his first full season at the highest level, we will once more have a strong driver line-up featuring a great mix of speed and experience,” Latvala continued.
Evans leads the drivers’ championship by three points over Ogier heading into the season-ending Rally Saudi Arabia, and Kalle Rovanperä still has a theoretical chance at the title.
“First of all, I’d say the most important thing is that the championship battle goes all the way to the final round. That keeps everyone interested. And of course, when Toyota drivers are involved in the fight, it makes it even better,” Latvala said.
“If Kalle had been fighting alongside Seb and Elfyn, the excitement could have been even greater. But even now, it’s really thrilling – for everyone watching. For the drivers, the last event may bring pressure, but I believe the best driver will win the championship,” Latvala added.
According to Juha Kankkunen, Toyota’s season has been a perfect success. He doubts that anything similar will be seen again anytime soon.
“We’ve had a season that may not be seen again – at least not for decades. For example, we had three consecutive wins at the start of the year, then a one-two-three-four finish in the Canary Islands, and a one-two-three-four-five finish in Finland. That’s historic. I was part of Lancia in 1990 when we achieved a one-two-three-four-five finish, and it doesn’t happen often. That was already some 50 years ago,” Kankkunen laughed.
“This season has been incredibly good: we’ve won 12 out of 13 rallies so far, which is absolutely amazing. And there’s still one rally left, where I’m quite sure Elfyn and Seb will once again be almost unbeatable. The situation looks really good. It’s also great to see that our drivers are fighting for the world championship, and no one else really has realistic chances anymore. Kalle still has a theoretical possibility, of course – but it would take a lot of bad luck for these two. Last year, the title was decided only on the final Power Stage here, but now we’re in a much stronger position,” Kankkunen enthused.
