Toyota’s Sebastien Ogier (above) jumped from third to first overall on a dramatic final day of WRC Croatia Rally, earning a surprise win as Thierry Neuville and Elfyn Evans both blew their own victory chances.
After three days of ultra-close competition on the rough and slick asphalt roads around capital city Zagreb, victory in the FIA World Rally Championship’s fourth round looked set to be decided between Hyundai i20 N Rally 1 driver Neuville and Evans in a Toyota GR Yaris Rally1. However, as they headed into the second stage of Sunday’s final day separated by just 2.6s, the lead battle and the rally was turned on its head.
A late pace note meant overnight leader Neuville arrived too fast into a left-hander and slid wide before riding up a bank and into a tree. The impact destroyed his Hyundai’s rear aero package but, more importantly, cost him almost 25s.
Unaware of his rival’s problem, Evans misjudged a tightening right-hand bend in the very same stage and spun, dropping 20s as he tried to get his Yaris pointing in the right direction again. It meant that Ogier, who had occupied a close third place since the opening stage on Friday morning, suddenly inherited a 9.1s lead with just two special stages remaining.
Unlike the guys ahead of him, the eight-time WRC champ, who’s elected to run only a limited 2024 WRC program, made no such errors and kept Toyota Gazoo Racing teammate Evans at bay. In the end, the Frenchman sealed his second Croatia Rally triumph by 9.7s, along with a milestone 100th WRC podium.
“It’s been a tough weekend,” admitted Ogier, who was co-driven by Vincent Landais. “We knew coming here that our start position would be an issue, but we never gave up and kept the pressure on for the whole weekend. I don’t think I’ve ever had so many moments in one rally, but it’s nice to get the win for the team.”
Toyota ace Sebastien Ogier’s somewhat unexpected Croatia Rally win was his 100th WRC podium. Jaanus Ree/Red Bull Content Pool
Toyota’s 1-2 result extended the Japanese marque’s lead in the WRC manufacturers’ championship to seven points over Hyundai. But it wasn’t a total bust for Neuville, who nursed his battered car to the end 36.1s behind Evans in the final podium spot. The 18 points Neuville earned by leading on Saturday evening helped to retain his WRC drivers’ championship lead, and he now heads Evans by six points after four of 13 rounds.
“It is what it is,” said Neuville. “We had a great few days, but unfortunately today didn’t go so well. At the end we’re still taking important points so it’s not so bad. We would have liked to push harder in the (rally-closing and bonus points-paying) Power Stage, but these cars without a rear wing are undriveable.”
Thierry Neuville lost his rear wing and his rally lead on Sunday morning, the Hyundai driver salvaging a third-place finish. Jaanus Ree/Red Bull Content Pool
Ott Tanak had a high-speed scare in Sunday’s second stage when his Hyundai mounted a grass embankment, but the Estonian recovered quickly to secure a fourth-place finish. He initially faced pressure from M-Sport Ford leader Adrien Fourmaux before the Frenchman plummeted down the order after damaging his Puma Rally1’s steering, hitting an anti-cut marker on the same test that caught out Neuville and Evans.
Toyota driver Takamoto Katsuta claimed the maximum seven points available for being the fastest driver across Super Sunday, climbing to fifth overall after Fourmaux’s troubles, while Andreas Mikkelsen’s Hyundai and Gregoire Munster’s Puma were sixth and seventh and last of the Rally1 runners in the overall top 10.
In WRC2, the second tier of international rallying, Nikolay Gryazin cruised to victory to maintain French manufacturer Citroen’s perfect record on the Croatian event.
With 39.5s in hand over his Citroen C3-driving DG Sport Competition teammate Yohan Rossel coming into Sunday, Gryazin took a risk-free approach in the final four stages to finish 38.5s clear of the WRC2 field.
“It feels really nice, especially with all the work we did before this event,” Gryazin said. “I just need to drive like this more often; I need to remember this feeling.”
Nikolay Gryazin took a risk-free approach on Sunday’s final leg to take another Croatian WRC2 class win for Citroen. Jaanus Ree/Red Bull Content Pool
The WRC returns to gravel next month for one of its most iconic events, Rally Portugal. Round five of the season is based in Matosinhos and takes place May 9-12.
WRC Croatia Rally, final positions after Leg Three, SS20
1 Sebastien Ogier/Vincent Landais (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) 2h40m23.6s
2 Elfyn Evans/Scott Martin (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) +9.7s
3 Thierry Neuville/Martijn Wydaeghe (Hyundai i20 N Rally1) +45.8s
4 Ott Tanak/Martin Jarveoja (Hyundai i20 N Rally1) +58.6s
5 Takamoto Katsuta/Aaron Johnston (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) +1m55.5s
6 Andreas Mikkelsen/Torstein Eriksen (Hyundai i20 N Rally1) +4m01.0s
7 Gregoire Munster/Louis Louka (Ford Puma Rally1) +5m11.0s
8 Nikolay Gryazin/Konstantin Aleksandrov (Citroen C3 – WRC2 winner) +9m21.3s
9 Yohan Rossel/Arnaud Dunand (Citroen C3 – WRC2) +9m59.5s
10 Sami Pajari/Enni Malkonen (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 – WRC2, non-points) +10m22.7s
WRC Drivers’ Championship after 4 rounds
1 Neuville 86 points
2 Evans 80
3 Adrien Fourmaux 59
4 Tanak 53
5 Ogier 45
WRC Manufacturers’ Championship after 4 rounds
1 Toyota Gazoo Racing 176 points
2 Hyundai Motorsport 169
3 M-Sport Ford 96
Check out WRC.com, the official home of the FIA World Rally Championship. And for the ultimate WRC experience, sign up for a Rally.TV subscription to watch all stages of every rally live and on demand, whenever and wherever.
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