2025 World Rally Championship
53rd running of the World Rally Championship
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The 2025 FIA World Rally Championship was the 53rd season of the World Rally Championship, an international rallying series organised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) and WRC Promoter GmbH. Teams and crews compete for the World Rally Championships for Drivers, Co-drivers and Manufacturers. Crews were free to compete in cars complying with Groups Rally1 to Rally5 regulations; however, only manufacturers competing with Rally1 cars were eligible to score points in the manufacturers' championship. The championship began in January 2025 with the Monte Carlo Rally and concluded in November 2025 with the calendar newcomer Rally Saudi Arabia. The series was supported by the WRC2 and WRC3 categories at every round of the championship and by Junior WRC at selected events.
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Thierry Neuville and Martijn Wydaeghe were the reigning drivers' and co-drivers' champions, having secured their first championship titles at the 2024 Rally Japan. Toyota were the defending manufacturers' champions.
At the conclusion of the championship, Sébastien Ogier and Vincent Landais won the World Rally Championship titles at the 2025 Rally Saudi Arabia. It was Ogier's ninth title, which tied him with Sébastien Loeb for the most championships won, and Landais' first. Elfyn Evans and Scott Martin were second, trailing by four points. Kalle Rovanperä and Jonne Halttunen were third, a further twenty-one points behind. In the manufacturers' championship, Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT successfully defended their title, holding a 224-point advantage over Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT, with M-Sport Ford WRT in third.
Calendar
The 2025 season was contested over fourteen rounds across Europe, Africa, South America and Asia.
| Round | Start date | Finish date | Rally | Rally headquarters | Surface | Stages | Distance | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 23 January | 26 January |  Rallye Automobile Monte Carlo |
Gap, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France | Mixed[a] | 18 | 343.80 km | [1] |
| 2 | 13 February | 16 February |  Rally Sweden |
Umeå, Västerbotten County, Sweden | Snow | 18 | 300.22 km | [2] |
| 3 | 20 March | 23 March |  Safari Rally Kenya |
Nairobi, Nairobi County, Kenya | Gravel | 21 | 383.10 km | [3] |
| 4 | 24 April | 27 April |  Rally Islas Canarias |
Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, Spain | Tarmac | 18 | 301.30 km | [4] |
| 5 | 15 May | 18 May |  Rally de Portugal |
Matosinhos, Porto, Portugal | Gravel | 24 | 344.50 km | [5] |
| 6 | 5 June | 8 June |  Rally Italia Sardegna |
Olbia, Sardinia, Italy | Gravel | 16 | 320.24 km | [6] |
| 7 | 26 June | 29 June |  Acropolis Rally Greece |
Lamia, Central Greece, Greece | Gravel | 17 | 345.76 km | [7] |
| 8 | 17 July | 20 July |  Rally Estonia |
Tartu, Tartu County, Estonia | Gravel | 20 | 308.35 km | [8] |
| 9 | 31 July | 3 August |  Rally Finland |
Jyväskylä, Central Finland, Finland | Gravel | 20 | 307.22 km | [9] |
| 10 | 28 August | 31 August |  Rally del Paraguay |
Encarnación, Itapúa, Paraguay | Gravel | 19 | 333.18 km | [10] |
| 11 | 11 September | 14 September |  Rally Chile |
Concepción, Biobío, Chile | Gravel | 16 | 306.76 km | [11] |
| 12 | 16 October | 19 October |  Central European Rally |
Bad Griesbach, Bavaria, Germany | Tarmac | 18 | 306.08 km | [12] |
| 13 | 6 November | 9 November |  Rally Japan |
Toyota, Aichi, Japan | Tarmac | 20 | 305.34 km | [13] |
| 14 | 26 November | 29 November |  Rally Saudi Arabia |
Jeddah, Mecca Province, Saudi Arabia | Gravel | 17 | 319.44 km | [14] |
| Sources:[15][16] | ||||||||
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Calendar changes
The calendar was expanded to fourteen rounds, including five flyaway events.[17] This was originally planned for the 2024 season,[18] but WRC Promoter GmbH retained the total of thirteen events in the hopes of attracting more Rally1 entries.[19]
- Rally Estonia returned to the championship after missing the 2024 season.[20] The event replaced Rally Latvia on the calendar.[21]
- Rally Islas Canarias was promoted from the European Rally Championship and became a World Championship event under a two-year deal.[22] The event ran on tarmac roads.[23]
- Rally Saudi Arabia joined the championship calendar after signing a ten-year contract with WRC Promoter GmbH.[24] The rally was based in Jeddah, and was the season finale.[25]
- Rally del Paraguay became a WRC event from 2025 after signing a multi-year deal, making Paraguay the thirty-eighth nation to host a WRC championship round.[26]
- The Croatia Rally was not featured on the calendar for the first time since the event joined the championship in 2021.[27] However, the event is set to return in 2026.[28]
- Rally Poland was also removed from the calendar after making a one-year return to the championship in 2024.[29]
Entrants
The following manufacturers contested the championship under Rally1 regulations.[30]
| Manufacturer | Entrant | Car | No. | Driver name | Co-driver name | Rounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ford |  M-Sport Ford WRT |
Ford Puma Rally1 | 13 |  Grégoire Munster |
 Louis Louka |
All |
| 55 |  Josh McErlean |
Eoin Treacy |
All | |||
| Hyundai |  Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT |
Hyundai i20 N Rally1 | 1 | Thierry Neuville |
Martijn Wydaeghe |
All |
| 8 | Ott Tänak |
Martin Järveoja |
1–11 | |||
| 16 |  Adrien Fourmaux |
Alexandre Coria |
All | |||
| Toyota | Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT |
Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 | 17 | Sébastien Ogier |
Vincent Landais |
1, 4–7, 9–14 |
| 18 | Takamoto Katsuta |
Aaron Johnston |
2–3, 8 | |||
| 33 | Elfyn Evans |
Scott Martin |
All | |||
| 69 | Kalle Rovanperä |
Jonne Halttunen |
All | |||
| Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT2 |
Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 | 5 | Sami Pajari |
Marko Salminen |
All | |
| Sources:[31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44] | ||||||
The following crews entered in Rally1 cars as privateers or under arrangement with the manufacturers.
| Manufacturer | Entrant | Car | No. | Driver name | Co-driver name | Rounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ford | M-Sport Ford WRT |
Ford Puma Rally1 | 2 | Diogo Salvi |
Axel Coronado |
5 |
| 9 | Jourdan Serderidis |
Frédéric Miclotte |
2–3, 6–7 | |||
| 20 |  Nasser Al-Attiyah |
Cándido Carrera |
14 | |||
| 22 |  Mārtiņš Sesks |
Renārs Francis |
2, 5–9, 14 | |||
| 28 | Alberto Heller |
 Luis Allende |
11 | |||
| Hyundai | Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT |
Hyundai i20 N Rally1 | 8 | Ott Tänak |
Martin Järveoja |
12–14 |
| Toyota | Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT |
Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 | 18 | Takamoto Katsuta |
Aaron Johnston |
1, 4–7, 9–14 |
| 37 | Lorenzo Bertelli |
Simone Scattolin |
||||
| 99 | Oliver Solberg |
Elliott Edmondson |
8 | |||
| Sources:[31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44] | ||||||
In detail
M-Sport retained the crew of Grégoire Munster and Louis Louka for another complete season.[45] They were joined by Josh McErlean and Eoin Treacy as the team's second full-time crew,[46] in collaboration with Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy.[47] The crew of Mārtiņš Sesks and Renārs Francis also competed on a part-time basis, with the pair starting their season at Rally Sweden.[48]
Hyundai team chief Cyril Abiteboul confirmed in July 2024 that Ott Tänak and Martin Järveoja would continue driving for their team in 2025.[49] Thierry Neuville and Martijn Wydaeghe also extended their contract for one year with the team.[50] They drove with competition number 1, a right earned by their 2024 championship title win.[51] Adrien Fourmaux and Alexandre Coria moved from M-Sport to drive a third car for the full season.[52]
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Toyota retained the crew of Kalle Rovanperä and Jonne Halttunen, who returned full-time after a partial season in 2024.[53] They joined the crews of Elfyn Evans and Scott Martin, and Takamoto Katsuta and Aaron Johnston as the team's full-time competitors.[54] Newly-crowned WRC2 champion Sami Pajari, who had also ran selected rallies with the team in a Rally1 car in 2024, was signed with a full-time programme with the team.[55] However, he would be joined with new co-driver Marko Salminen,[56] following the departure of Enni Mälkönen.[57] Sébastien Ogier and Vincent Landais continued to run a partial season with the team.[58]
Regulation changes
Technical regulations
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South Korean tyre manufacturer Hankook became the official tyre supplier of the championship, providing tyres to all entrants of four wheel drive cars.[59] The company replaced Pirelli, who supplied tyres to the championship between 2021 and 2024.[60] Under the terms of the agreement with WRC Promoter, Hankook will supply tyres until the end of the 2027 championship.[61]
Ahead of the season, it was announced Rally1 cars would no longer use the hybrid system introduced in 2022. The minimum weight of the cars and the width of the air intake was also reduced to compensate for the change so that cars maintain the same power-to-weight ratio that they had when using the hybrid system.[62] The decision was made to relieve concerns of the increasing costs of repairing the hybrid system.[63]
Sporting regulations
The points distribution system was revised for the second consecutive season following widespread criticism of the 2024 point system.[64] Points were awarded based on the general top ten classification at the end of the rally in a scale of 25–17–15–12–10–8–6–4–2–1, with additional points awarded to the five fastest crews on Sunday, with further points for the five fastest crews in the Power Stage.[65] Points awarded on the general classification after Saturday had finished as in 2024, were dropped.[66]
Season report
Opening rounds
The 2025 championship commenced with the Monte Carlo Rally, held in changeable conditions. Sébastien Ogier and co-driver Vincent Landais took victory, fending off a late challenge from the Hyundai crew of Adrien Fourmaux and Alexandre Coria.[67] This was Ogier's tenth victory at Monte Carlo—nine in the WRC and one in the IRC.[68] At the following round in Sweden, the Toyota car of Elfyn Evans and Scott Martin won by 3.8 seconds over Takamoto Katsuta and Aaron Johnston (also Toyota), giving Evans a twenty-eight-point lead in the drivers' championship.[69] At the Safari Rally in Kenya, the early leader was the Hyundai of Ott Tänak and Martin Järveoja, however a driveshaft failure on Friday's second loop forced them to retire. Evans and Martin inherited the lead and held it until the finish, extending their championship lead to thirty-six points.[70] Katsuta and Johnston, who had been running second, rolled their Yaris on the final Power Stage; although they finished the stage, the car was too damaged to continue, forcing their retirement.[71][72] At the inaugural Rally Islas Canarias, Toyota dominated by taking the top four positions.[73] Kalle Rovanperä and Jonne Halttunen won their first event of the season, having set the fastest time on fifteen of the eighteen special stages.[74]
Mid-season gravel events
Toyota's dominance continued on gravel at the Rally de Portugal. Ogier and Landais secured their seventh win at the event, extending their own record.[75] Their closest rival, the Hyundai i20 of Tänak and Järveoja, experienced a power steering failure.[76] Ogier also won the Sardinia Rally for the fifth time, setting a record for that event.[77] Hyundai finally won a stage when Tänak and Järveoja triumphed at the Acropolis Rally in Greece.[78] At Rally Estonia, Oliver Solberg and Elliott Edmondson returned to the Rally1 category with Toyota, having been dropped by Hyundai after the 2022 season,[79] surprising other teams by claiming their maiden Rally1 victory.[80] At Rally Finland, the five Toyota cars took the top five places. Rovanperä and Halttunen secured their first victory at their home event,[81] taking them within three points of the championship lead.[82] The championship then moved to South America, where Ogier and Landais won the inaugural Rally del Paraguay, bringing them to nine points behind to the championship leader.[83] The pair also won Rally Chile, taking them into the championship lead.[84]
Closing rounds
At the Central European Rally, Rovanperä and Halttunen secured their third win of the season, shortly after Rovanperä announced he would retire from WRC at the end of the season.[85] Ogier and Landais had been leading but crashed out,[86] allowing Evans and Martin to finish second, which was sufficient to reclaim the championship lead.[87] This 1–2 finish also secured Toyota their fifth consecutive manufacturers' world title.[88] Ogier and Landais responded with their sixth win of the season at a rain-hit Rally Japan, reducing the championship lead to three points with one event remaining.[89]
The championship was decided at the inaugural Rally Saudi Arabia. The rally was won by the outgoing champions Thierry Neuville and Martijn Wydaeghe, who led a Hyundai 1–2 finish ahead of teammates Fourmaux and Coria.[90] Ogier and Landais finished third, ahead of Evans and Martin in sixth, gaining seven points more – enough to take the world title.[91] This was Ogier's ninth world championship, equalling Sébastien Loeb's record.[92]
Results and standings
Season summary
Scoring system
Points were awarded to the top ten classified finishers in each event.[121] In the manufacturers' championship, teams were eligible to nominate three crews to score points, but these points were only awarded to the top two classified finishers representing a manufacturer and driving a 2025-specification Rally1 car. There were also five bonus points awarded to the winners in an accumulated standings across all Sunday stages, four points for second place, three for third, two for fourth and one for fifth. The same points scale was awarded to the five fastest crews of the Power Stage as well.[122]
| Position | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th | 9th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 25 | 17 | 15 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 |
| Sunday | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | N/a | ||||
| Power Stage | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | N/a | ||||
FIA World Rally Championship for Drivers
The driver who recorded a points-scoring classification would be taken into account for the championship regardless of the categories.
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FIA World Rally Championship for Co-Drivers
The co-driver who recorded a points-scoring classification would be taken into account for the championship regardless of the categories.
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FIA World Rally Championship for Manufacturers
Only the best two results of each manufacturer in the respective overall classification by the end of each rally, accumulated position of all Sunday stages and Power Stage at each rally were taken into account for the championship.
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Notes
- The Monte Carlo Rally is run on a tarmac and snow surface.
