The scenarios for the awarding of the title in Australia

There are precisely 83,96 km remaining to decide the attribution of the 2018 world title among Drivers, as well as among Manufacturers. With Ott Tänak and Jari-Matti Latvala placed in the first two places in the ranking of Rally d’Australie, le Toyota Gazoo Racing est en position idéale avant la dernière étape, alors que chez les pilotes, la situation est un peu plus serrée.

Certainly, by ranking sixth overall for the moment, Sébastien Ogier (M-Sport Ford) is in a position to retain his title, since the Frenchman is ahead of his main rival Thierry Neuville (Hyundai), only eighth after having a puncture on SS6 yesterday in the first stage.

At the moment, before the last stage, and with 25 points provisionally registered, Ott Tänak could not close the gap of 23 points, Sébastien Ogier being for the moment credited with eight points, against four to Thierry Neuville.

In fact, the provisional championship ranking is as follows: Ogier 212 pts, Tänak 206 pts, Neuville 205 pts. But the last stage and the bonus points of the Power Stage could change the situation. Taking into account the current rankings, here is what the three rivals must do to be titled.

Sébastien Ogier champion if:

If he is ahead in the same order as the current ranking Thierry Neuville (6th and 8th), and this without looking at the result of Ott Tänak in the Power Stage. If Tänak scored the five bonus points in the last SS, in addition to the 25 for victory, he would fall one point behind Ogier, if the latter records a goalless score in the Power Stage.

Thierry Neuville champion if:

The Belgian must at least overtake Sébastien Ogier to have more chances of being titled. His current eighth place offers him no hope, and if he were to finish seventh with maximum points in the Power Stage, while counting on a zero point from Ogier, the two drivers would be tied, with Ogier being titled on the number of victories. In the current situation, any point scored by Ogier in the Power Stage will further reduce Neuville's hopes.

Ott Tänak champion if:

A maximum victory would give the Toyota driver 30 points, and would also allow him to be the best performer of the season with five victories. But that would not give him the title given the current ranking of Sébastien Ogier, crowned in this scenario by one point (assuming zero points in the Power Stage). For the Estonian, no choice, he must count on a problem for the M-Sport driver, and hope that Neuville does not move up the rankings and does not score the maximum points in the Power Stage.