WRC Chile: Solberg wins as Toyota secures manufacturers’ title, Evans drops important points with puncture

Oliver Solberg claimed a commanding victory on Rally Chile, with the Toyota driver beating team-mate Sébastien Ogier by 16.6 seconds. Hyundai’s Adrien Fourmaux completed the podium 33.3 seconds behind. For Solberg, it was his third WRC victory and his second win of the season, following his triumph in Monte Carlo.

It was a particularly special weekend for Toyota. The Japanese manufacturer needed just seven points in Chile to secure the manufacturers’ title, and did so with two rounds of the season still remaining.

Toyota secured its sixth consecutive world title and tenth overall, equalling Lancia’s record as the most successful manufacturer in WRC history. Lancia also won six consecutive titles between 1987 and 1992.

Solberg took the lead on Friday and only briefly lost it to Elfyn Evans after the second stage. The Toyota driver started Sunday with a 19.1-second advantage over the Welshman, who won the opening stage of the day to reduce the gap to 13.2 seconds.

Evans drops important championship points

Evans, on course for a strong second-place finish, lost a significant amount of time on the penultimate stage. The championship leader suffered a puncture and stopped to change the wheel on the stage. He lost more than two minutes and dropped to fifth, promoting Ogier to second and Fourmaux to third. (Article continues after the photo.)

Solberg made no mistakes and also set the fastest time on the final Power Stage. Ogier’s second place marked his 120th WRC podium, equalling Sébastien Loeb’s record.

Being the only driver to fight with the leading Toyotas, Fourmaux secured his 13th WRC podium, while Sami Pajari took advantage of Evans’ problems to finish fourth. The Finn was unable to match the pace at the front, but nevertheless gained three points on Evans in the championship. (Article continues after the photo.)

Rossel triumphs in WRC2, Türkkan claims JWRC title

In WRC2, victory went to Lancia driver Yohan Rossel. The Frenchman enjoyed a strong weekend and won by 53 seconds from Škoda’s Robert Virves. Gus Greensmith completed the WRC2 podium for Toyota.

Chile also hosted the final round of this year’s Junior WRC (JWRC) season. Turkey’s Ali Türkkan secured the title, with his task made easier after championship rival Calle Carlberg crashed on Saturday.

Evans remains at the top of the championship standings with two rallies remaining. Solberg scored 34 of a possible 35 points in Chile to reduce his deficit to 21 points. Pajari now sits four points ahead of Solberg, meaning the title battle remains wide open heading into the Italian round of the WRC, Rally Italia Sardegna.

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#	Drivers	Car	Time / Diff to 1st
1.	Solberg / Edmondson	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	2:57:08.2
2.	Ogier / Landais	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	+16.6
3.	Fourmaux / Coria	Hyundai i20 N Rally1	+33.3
4.	Pajari / Salminen	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	+1:33.9
5.	Evans / Martin	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	+2:22.3
6.	Lappi / Mälkönen	Hyundai i20 N Rally1	+5:07.0
7.	McErlean / Treacy	Ford Puma Rally1	+7:31.5
8.	Rossel / Dunand	Lancia Ypsilon HF Rally2	+9:31.0
9.	Virves / Viilo	Skoda Fabia RS Rally2	+10:24.0
10.	Greensmith / Andersson	Toyota GR Yaris Rally2	+10:58.2

#	Driver	Points
1.	Elfyn Evans	230
2.	Sami Pajari	213 (-17)
3.	Oliver Solberg	209 (-21)
4.	Sébastien Ogier	171 (-59)
5.	Adrien Fourmaux	167 (-63)
6.	Takamoto Katsuta	163 (-67)
7.	Thierry Neuville	129 (-101)
8.	Hayden Paddon	38 (-192)
9.	Josh McErlean	35 (-195)
10.	Esapekka Lappi	33 (-197)

#	Manufacturer	Points
1.	Toyota GAZOO Racing WRT	614
2.	Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT	410 (-204)
3.	Toyota GAZOO Racing WRT 2	227 (-387)
4.	M-Sport Ford WRT	152 (-462)

Photos: Red Bull Content Pool, Toyota GAZOO Racing