Blog

Onto the final day then of this classic event and what would the final 50km’s give us? Overnight rain made the roads wet and then the clouds cleared which led to the roads freezing. There was also frost on the edge of the roads.

The different crews had to make their tyre choices as there would not be any tyre fitting zone before the end of the day. There was also the additional aspect that the power stage was only being run once.

First up then was SS16 Avançon / Notre-Dame-du-Laus 2 – 13.97 km and Seb was fastest from Elfyn and Kalle. Adrien could only manage the eighth fastest time and lost third place to his teammate Ott, now 4.5 behind the 2019 world champion. There was drama for Takamoto who went off the road and couldn’t get the car back on the road. Then Sami also went off at a bridge after losing control.

It all changed on the following stage, SS17 Digne-les-Bains / Chaudon-Norante 2 – 19.01 km with Adrien taking an amazing stage win by 4.5 seconds over Kalle and Elfyn. He’d narrowed the gap to Elfyn to just four seconds and also reduced the gap to Seb to just 22.2 from over 46 seconds. Also, to exit on this stage was Greg who’d hit some ice and hit the side of the mountain leading to damage which put him out for the rest of the day.

Onto the final stage then, SS18 La Bollène-Vésubie / Peïra-Cava [Power Stage] – 17.92 km and would the choice made by Elfyn and Seb to go with the studded tyres, or Adrien with the soft tyres and no studded tyres? Well, there was still quite a bit of snow and ice on the stage, particularly on the other side of the col du Turini. Well, the result showed that Seb and Elfyn took the right tyres to the stages as they set the pace with Adrien taking the third fastest time. Kalle was also on the pace and passed Ott for fourth overall.

Let’s take a look at the final finishing positions and hear from the drivers.

Final Overall Classification – Rallye Monte-Carlo

Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT

Sébastien Ogier

“It’s amazing to win this rally for the 10th time: it makes me incredibly happy and proud. This rally is the one that gave me the dream to be a rally driver, so if I could pick only one to win in a season, it would always be this one. This year it’s been a huge fight up until the very last stage. We had changing conditions, difficult tyre decisions and pressure right until the end so I’m glad we managed to keep it under control. We definitely had some moments but to win this rally I think you always need a bit of luck too. It’s a perfect start to the year for the team so we couldn’t ask for anything more.”

Elfyn Evans

“This was a typical Rallye Monte-Carlo, a bit more extreme than in recent years and it was a properly challenging weekend. I’m very happy to be here at the end with a decent haul of points. Today started off with some very tricky conditions, we made a change at the last moment to take four studded tyres and I wasn’t sure it was the right call. In the end it seems there wasn’t a lot between the two choices, and we had a pretty thrilling Power Stage to finish: we had a close moment a few corners from the end but thankfully we managed to get away with it.”

Kalle Rovanperä

“Rallye Monte-Carlo is always tough, and it was especially so this year. For me personally it was a pretty difficult weekend. We didn’t have the result that we wanted or the pace that we wanted but we have to be happy at the end to have got some pretty good points. Today was not a bad day for us: we just tried our best, kept consistent and it paid off. A big thanks to the team, now let’s see what we can do in Sweden.”

Takamoto Katsuta

“This morning in the first stage we knew that the conditions could be quite tricky, but we came to one right-hand corner that was frosty where we didn’t have that information in our pacenotes. We were quite slow going into the corner, but the car went wide and got stuck in a small ditch which we couldn’t get out of. Until then it had been quite a good rally, especially Saturday when the pace was good. It’s a pity but I just need to refocus on the next rally in Sweden and try to do a good job for the team there.”

Sami Pajari

“The approach for today was the same as before and we were not planning to push particularly hard. There was just one surprisingly icy braking point which just caught us out. It was an unfortunate end to our rally, as it been going according to plan until then. On Saturday especially we saw that the times were getting better, and the feeling was getting better and the confidence was rising. Everything felt under control so it’s a pity to end the rally like this, but we will try to learn from what happened and look forward to Sweden.”

Hyundai Motorsport

Adrien Fourmaux

“Monte-Carlo is always something special, and to have such a great start with Hyundai is really positive so I am really pleased with my weekend. We put a lot of pressure on Elfyn and Seb, but we couldn’t push it that little bit more with that much snow on the road as we didn’t want to risk too much. It’s a shame, but it’s a part of game – we have no regrets. Sweden will be good, for sure; we will be second on the road in the snow and the cold temperatures, but I am really looking forward to it.”

Ott Tänak

“It was quite an entertaining weekend but still lots of positives to take away. We got some good points and can be a bit happier with the road position going to round two. There were some things we couldn’t get right, but obviously the base was there. We will get it sorted and working, but it takes a bit of time. I am looking forward to Sweden, and we will be able to try the upgraded car for the first time so hopefully we will see an improved performance on that side as well.”

Thierry Neuville

“All in all, it was a challenging weekend for us. It went wrong from the braking in the hairpin on Friday, and then the combination of our road position and the conditions today that didn’t favour us. Today there was less ice than expected, and cars were going faster on slick tyres – it was a difficult Sunday. We can optimistic about what’s coming next in Sweden; we will have a better road position and hopefully a better rally because of it, but we still need to make the most of it.”

M-Sport Ford WRT

Josh McErlean

“Seventh overall at the Monte-Carlo Rally! What a way to kick off our Rally1 debut with the Ford Puma. It’s been a massive challenge with so many new elements – new car, new team, new co-driver, and Hankook tyres – but we kept our heads, did our own thing and learnt every step of the way. The conditions have been so demanding, but it’s been thoroughly enjoyable! Huge thanks to everyone who made this possible – we’re excited for our next event and to the snow of Sweden.

“It’s been an unforgettable experience, and I’m proud of what we achieved out there. The boys and girls at M-Sport have been phenomenal!”

Grégoire Munster

“I think there are quite a lot of positives to mention, I think generally we had some good pace and really improved day after day. We posted a fourth-fastest time on Thursday, two second-fastest on Friday and then our first stage win in the morning on Saturday. So, we’ve been consistently improving, and we’ve learned a lot as well. Thanks to the team for working late on Friday night to fix the car so we could go again on Saturday. It gave us a chance to grab some more experience which was super important, especially because we’re driving on the new tyres.

Oliver Solberg

“It’s been such a positive week. Apart from this silly moment on Thursday night, everything has gone really well. We’ve learned so much about the new car and straight away I want to say a big thanks to Elliott [Edmondson, co-driver] and the team – all the people at Printsport have been fantastic in making me feel at home with the Yaris.

“I said before the start that it was nice to be part of this Toyota family and competing with the GR Yaris and this is really what I feel from doing the first event.

“The car was quite different from what I was driving before, but we did a lot of testing which really helped me find a good feeling. The times we were able to set were really strong, it was nice to win a lot of stages and I really think we had the pace to win this one. It’s a little bit frustrating that we had this damage on Thursday night, but this is the game, this is the sport.”

“I have enjoyed driving this car in some really tricky conditions on the Monte this week,” continued Oliver. “The last day, over the classic Col de Turini stage, it was really tricky with the ice, dry Tarmac and some snow – it was impossible to find the perfect tyre choice – but we made the finish.

“Now, it’s time for the snow and time to go home and compete in Umeå. As you can imagine, this is one of my favourite rallies for the year and I can’t wait to take this Yaris to those roads.”

Summary

Well, what a great start to the new season for Toyota. Seb taking his tenth victory in this classic rally was amazing considering his moment when he went off the road and fell behind. What came after that was a masterclass in driving.

Elfyn also had a fantastic rally as expected and led as well, maintaining great pace to keep himself in the podium positions throughout the weekend. This is a great start to his title hopes for this season.

Finally, Adrien had a brilliant first event at Hyundai and utterly deserved his sixth ever podium in his career. Taking a stage win along the way shows how comfortable he has become with his new car. There is every chance he and Alex could take their first win this year.

2025 FIA World Rally Championship for Drivers’ Standings 
After round 1

2025 FIA World Rally Championship for Manufacturers’ Standings
After round 1

Onto the longest day then of the rally with 120km’s over six stages and a break in the middle for service. This day also featured the longest stage of the weekend with the 27km opening the day and the afternoon stages.

Greg and Louis returned to the action after having a problem on the road section following the final stage of yesterday which meant they’d not made it back to service. They would restart under the super rally rules.

First up then was SS10 La Motte-Chalancon / Saint-Nazaire 1 – 27 km and opening the road would be the place to be as Greg took his first ever stage win. He was sat on the road section watching the live coverage when the final car came through which of course was Seb. He was really close to Greg’s time and was second fastest whilst Kalle was third. Adrien and Elfyn set the same time as they continued to fight for second overall.

Next was SS11 Aucelon / Recoubeau-Jansac 1 – 15.48 km and Ott was fastest from Adrien and Elfyn. The Estonian had found some pace and was really quick in this one, moving to just three seconds of Kalle who was in fourth place. Meanwhile ahead of them both Adrien moved ahead of Elfyn and into second place.

The final stage before service SS12 La Bâtie-des-Fonts / Aspremont 1 – 17.85 km and Takamoto was fastest from Thierry and Seb. Elfyn lost a few more seconds to Adrien, the gap now 2.8 seconds. Ott was also looking to pass Kalle as he moved to within one second of the Finn.

After service came SS13 La Motte-Chalancon / Saint-Nazaire 2 – 27 km and Ott was fastest from Elfyn and Takamoto. The result of these quick times was that Elfyn was back ahead of Adrien and Ott moved ahead of Kalle. Seb was maintaining a very good pace and had a 18.4 second lead over his teammate.

Into SS14 Aucelon / Recoubeau-Jansac 2 – 15.48 km and Ott was fastest from Seb and Thierry. There was another swap between Adrien and Elfyn as the Frenchman moved back into second place. The gap was tiny though, just seven tenths separated them both. Meanwhile Ott was closing on them both and had the gap down to less than ten seconds.

The final stage then SS15 La Bâtie-des-Fonts / Aspremont 2 – 17.85 km and Ott was fastest again from Elfyn and Takamoto who’d had an excellent end to Saturday’s stages. Elfyn was back ahead of Adrien and Ott was now just 2.5 seconds from his teammate. The Estonian had had a brilliant day once he and his team had got the i20 into the sweet spot.

Let’s take a look at the top positions and hear from the drivers.

Classification after Saturday

Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT

Sébastien Ogier

“Again, it was not an easy day. Some sections were fun to drive, and others were tricky, especially at the end of the day when it was getting dark and I had some little moments on the mud, so I’m glad to have this day behind me and that we could increase the gap a little bit. The gap is not a comfortable one but it’s still a positive one to take into the last day. Like usual it will be difficult until the end because the weather tonight looks unpredictable, so we need to make the right tyre choice and stay focused.”

Elfyn Evans

“Overall, I’m pretty happy with the day and we’re still in a pretty good position tonight. We had some very mixed conditions out there with a lot of pollution on the stages, and our performance was a bit mixed with it. We pushed when we felt good and maybe took a little bit too much caution at other times. I was pretty happy with the last stage of the day, to not lose too much time to Ott and to take back second from Adrien, and I’m looking forward to tomorrow: we don’t know fully what to expect, but we could be facing some quite difficult conditions.”

Kalle Rovanperä

“It was still quite a challenging day today. Some stages and some sections were pretty good and then we were just losing a bit too much time in other places. I was just not feeling completely confident, so it was still a difficult day. With the team we’re trying to change some small things and at least we still have tomorrow, when we can try something new and see how it’s going. We’ll try to do our best of course and hopefully get some extra points.”

Takamoto Katsuta

“It was a very good and positive day for me. Last night with the team we changed some things in the setup and today I felt a much better feeling with the car, so I was able to push more. I was able to go much quicker than yesterday and we set some good times, which was giving me better confidence. Tomorrow will be quite a big day and the weather could be very interesting. I will try to do my best to take some points.”

Sami Pajari

“Today we did a clear step forwards and I had a much nicer and more enjoyable feeling. We didn’t really change the plan, but the feeling was getting better and also the times were nicer, so that made it more enjoyable also. We can see that we just need some time and experience, and the times get better. From what we’re hearing, the conditions tomorrow could be even more challenging so it could be another different and difficult day ahead.”

Hyundai Motorsport

Adrien Fourmaux

“It’s been quite a rollercoaster at this Monte-Carlo. I was not so happy with my pace this afternoon; I was struggling to get the grip. Tomorrow is a big day; we have kept a reasonable gap to Elfyn but then Ott came back really strong this afternoon so we will see what happens. He had a really good pace today, so our focus will be understanding why this afternoon I didn’t have the same. Tomorrow will be a big challenge with the rain that is expected and the potential of black ice, so it’s going to be an interesting day.”

Ott Tänak

“It’s been a very positive afternoon. Finally, I found a good feeling in the car and immediately I had a good rhythm to actually enjoy myself. The gravel crew did a very good job in these very tricky conditions, particularly in the last one, that helped me find my confidence. This morning we found which way to go with the setup. I had no mileage with this tyre at all, so we didn’t know which direction to go, but we began to understand, and it started to work for me. I’m looking to keep a good rhythm and enjoy myself in the car tomorrow.”

Thierry Neuville

“We slightly touched the wall on stage 14, and I was bit surprised, we weren’t aware it was wet in that corner, but it was nothing major. I don’t know if the progress we made today is enough to maximise our day tomorrow, and the weather conditions could have a huge impact. We have to prepare as best as we can and make some changes to the setup because things are not feeling as they should. Maybe we change the gearbox and then see how things are in the morning – with Super Sunday and the Power Stage there is still an opportunity to bring some points home.”

Sunday

Sunday’s stages will see the crews tackle 50km’s over three stages. In an unusual move the power stage will only be run once.

Will Seb take a tenth win and what will happen as Elfyn, Adrien and Ott battle over the remaining podium positions?

After the first three stages on Thursday evening and 50km’s gave a top three of Thierry, Elfyn and Seb.

First up then was SS4 Saint-Maurice / Aubessagne 1 – 18.68 km and Kalle was fastest from Greg and Sami. Of course, the leaders were quite different with Elfyn moving into the overall lead from Thierry who was leading at the start of the day and Seb holding third. Four seconds covered the top three.

Sadly, SS5 Saint-Léger-les-Mélèzes / La Bâtie-Neuve 1 – 16.68 km was cancelled as there was a medical emergency with one of the spectators.

Next up then came SS6 La Bréole / Selonnet 1 – 18.31 km and with frost near the end of the stage it would be a very tricky end. However, three crews had trouble with moments in the stage. First was Thierry who went off the road at a right-hand hairpin. He’d broken the rear left suspension, and the tyre was dragging along the road. Next up Seb went wide on a left hander but didn’t lose too much time. However, Ott also had a moment as well and went off the road into a ditch on the right-hand side of the road. When he got to the end of the stage he discovered huge damage to the bodywork at the rear. There was a change to the standings behind Welshman Elfyn with Seb and Adrien both gaining a position each as they moved into second and third overall.

After the service break came SS7 Saint-Maurice / Aubessagne 2 – 18.68 km and Elfyn was fastest from Kalle and Thierry. Kalle gained two positions in this stage, moving ahead of Ott and Greg. It seemed that the two-time champion was finding some pace out there. There was 15.4 seconds covering the top three which remained Elfyn, Seb and Adrien.

Onto SS8 Saint-Léger-les-Mélèzes / La Bâtie-Neuve 2 – 16.68 km and there was a change in positions at the front. Elfyn who was leading by 7.9 seconds at the start of the stage emerged 6.8 behind Seb at the end. The reason for this lay in the halfway point of the stage, around 10km’s as the Welshman had a spin at the exit of a right-hander which was very slippery with ice and snow. He and Scott had to reverse to reposition the car leading to the time loss. The top three fastest were Seb, Adrien and Thierry.

The final stage then, SS9 La Bréole / Selonnet 2 – 18.31 km and Seb was fastest from Adrien and Elfyn. There was more drama for Thierry as he went off the road again at the same corner as earlier. One of his front tyres had failed and he could not stop the car again. Once returned around, he completed the stage in road mode.

Let’s take a look at the top positions and hear from the drivers.

Classification after Saturday

Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT

Sébastien Ogier

“It’s been a positive day, turning a 13s deficit into a 12s lead, but not everything has been perfect. I was struggling to find a rhythm in the morning and also in the first stage this afternoon, when I was not really driving close enough to the limit. I’m glad I managed to find that for the last two stages, and especially that I managed to win my home stage with a lot of family and friends watching. But we can’t relax yet, there’s still a long way to go and we have to continue in this way tomorrow.”

Elfyn Evans

“It’s been tricky again out there today. This morning, the first stage was evolving with every car, and the last one of the loop was hard to judge also with the sun coming out and melting the ice that had been marked in our pacenotes. We had a pretty decent start to the afternoon, then in the middle stage a bit of a spin on the one full icy corner that we had, which cost us the lead. We lost a bit more on the last one too but it’s still not a huge gap and there’s a long way to go.”

Kalle Rovanperä

“For us it’s been a clean day with no drama, but overall, we were just not quick enough. In the morning the conditions were tricky, but it was going OK. The pace seems to be good when we’re on the snow or studded tyres, but I still need to find some more pace for when the road is cleaner and we’re on the slick tyres. Tomorrow it seems like the roads will be a bit drier so hopefully I can find some more speed.”

Takamoto Katsuta

“This afternoon was much better for me than the morning, when I was struggling to follow the information that was in my pacenotes. The route note crews went through the stages very early in the morning when there was a lot of black ice and frost, some of which had melted by the time we did the stages, so I found it hard to know how much grip to expect. In the afternoon it was easier, just a bit muddy and a few icy corners. There’s still interesting days to come and I just want to stay calm.”

Sami Pajari

“It’s been a really tricky day. Some stages were really good and some split times really good. We were also trying some different tyre combinations just for the experience. I can see many places where I can improve, but my mindset is to be clean and build up the confidence and knowledge step-by-step and then increase our pace. In this sense everything is still going to plan even though I would like to be a bit quicker. Tomorrow the conditions could be easier for us but we need to see how it is in the morning.”

Hyundai Motorsport

Adrien Fourmaux

“It’s been a really good day. We didn’t make any mistakes with the tyres, we had really good pace and we made it to third in the provisional classification. There’s still a long rally ahead, but we are really pleased with what we have achieved so far. I think every driver wants to win here, although it is not my target, but we will keep this pace and see where we are. As a team today has been quite a shame, but it’s positive for us so we will see what happens. Tomorrow will be a new challenge, but we are confident that we can keep a good pace – nothing is impossible at Rallye Monte-Carlo.”

Ott Tänak

“It’s been a demanding day; lots of condition changes, even from first loop to second loop you don’t really recognise the conditions. We have seen more or less everything today – from dry tarmac to black ice. The contrast is huge between the grip levels we had on the same stage, so in the end we just had to go with the information we had, trust it and go for it. This afternoon was a bit of a struggle to get into the rhythm. Before the last stage we balanced some settings on the car, and after that it behaved a bit better. Now we need to get back into the faster rhythm. We need to see what’s coming tomorrow, and we are still not sure what is waiting for us.”

Thierry Neuville

“Today was a day to forget, I made a mistake this morning and misjudged the braking with these studded tyres. The target this afternoon was to see if we could gain back a bit of time this afternoon, maybe a position or two, and then unfortunately we had a puncture three kilometres into the same stage. We don’t know these tyres very well, but we decided to continue with the puncture and the tyre went in a braking zone. I am disappointed with the one mistake this morning, but a puncture can happen to anybody. We made some changes overnight for the day and I couldn’t find the confidence I needed all day. We’ll go back to the setup we used Thursday evening and see if we feel more comfortable.”

Saturday’s stages.

Saturday sees the longest day of action with 120km’s over six stages and the longest stage of the whole weekend is the first stage of the day. At 27km the crews will need to be ready for this. Who knows what it has in store!