Two-time World Rally Champion Kalle Rovanperä will step away from the WRC (World Rally Championship) at the end of the 2025 season to pursue a new motorsport challenge.
The 25-year-old Finn will remain part of the TOYOTA GAZOO Racing family, competing in the Japanese Super Formula Championship from 2026 — marking a rare transition from rallying to single-seater racing “as he takes on his ambitious new challenge targeting the highest levels of circuit racing.”
Since joining Toyota’s WRC team in 2020 at age 19, Rovanperä has rewritten records as one of rallying’s youngest and most successful drivers. He became the youngest-ever WRC podium finisher at Rally Sweden 2020 and the youngest rally winner at Rally Estonia 2021. Under the new Rally1 hybrid era, he dominated the 2022 season, winning five of the first seven events and clinching the world title at 22, the youngest in WRC history. He successfully defended his crown in 2023, finishing all but one rally inside the top four.
Despite a partial campaign in 2024, Rovanperä won four of seven starts, helping Toyota secure its fourth consecutive manufacturers’ championship. In 2025, with three rallies remaining, he remains in contention for a third world title, highlighted by wins in the Canary Islands and his first home victory in Finland, the fastest WRC rally ever recorded.
The Finn has already shared more on his ambitions as he will race in Japanese Super Formula to prepare himself to race in F2 (Formula 2) in 2027.
Rovanperä on his shock motorsport move: WRC to Super Formula
“This decision has not been an easy one, but it’s one that I have been thinking about for a while. Having already achieved so much in rallying at this age, I started to think about what other possibilities I might have and what other challenges I would like to take on. It has been a tough decision, but it feels like the right one to pursue my next dreams and challenges.
“It’s special to have the support of TOYOTA GAZOO Racing from the start of this new challenge and to be able to race in Super Formula. I know that it’s jumping straight into the deep end, coming from rallying, but I’m really looking forward to it and together with TGR we have a good plan to prepare in the best way possible and to try and make the most of it. Since I started driving as a small kid, it was my dream to be a WRC driver, to win a rally, and to become world champion.
“To have achieved all that at such a young age has been an incredible feeling, and a big thanks goes to TGR-WRT: we have done some really great things together and it has been a pleasure to work with such an amazing team. I also can’t thank Jonne enough for his help since our first days working together. Very big thanks too to all the fans who have been supporting us through all the ups and downs. We still have three rallies to go and we will give it everything and keep pushing until the end,” the double WRC champion said.
Photo: Toyota GAZOO Racing
