Alexandre Coria's take: "It's going to come down to the details" at the Rally Japan

A rather surprising situation in the World Rally Championship: May isn't even over yet, and this weekend we'll already be witnessing the final asphalt round of the 2026 season. It will also be the very last rally Asphalt for the current top-category cars, much to the delight of the many fans present at this Rally Japan, always extremely popular with local enthusiasts. They certainly get their money's worth, since the WRC is back just six months after his last appearance on the side of Toyota City: The Rally Japan was originally the penultimate round of the 2025 season (November 06-09) and has been brought forward for the 2026 season. For all these reasons, the watchword for this year's event will undoubtedly be "fun," as Alexandre Coria, co-driver of...Adrien fourmaux, at the end of the rally reconnaissance runs organized earlier this week.

Rally Japan: A route very well known to all

Unsurprisingly, with such a short gap between the 2025 and 2026 editions, the route of this Rally Japan is familiar to many crews. "SS1/4, Asuke, at 12,90 kilometers, will certainly be completely new for everyone, but otherwise, apart from the final kilometers of SS2/5, Isegami's Tunnel, also known as the 'Tunnel Stage,' and a few chicanes and corners, everyone knows the stages very well," the co-driver from the Hérault region told us. Therefore, according to him, the gaps between all the competitors are likely to be tight: "I think it will come down to the details," he added. Another factor to consider is the weather: it should be ideal for most of the rally, but could hold a few surprises… “For the Shakedown, which is to take place this Thursday morning local time, as well as for Friday morning, there is a risk of rain,” Alexandre Coria mentioned at the end of the reconnaissance runs where many local fans were already present along the roads.

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High temperatures expected at the Rally Japan?

Although asphalt is not the preferred surface of HyundaiThe crew that our interviewee forms with Adrien Fourmaux is nonetheless confident heading into this seventh round of the season. “Last year, before losing a door (laughs), we were in the mix, even though the i20N Rally1 is a little less competitive on this surface. Between the weather and the stages themselves, which are very clean, everything is in place to have maximum fun one last time with these cars that are so high-performing on tarmac. However, we have to be careful of the heat, because when the sun is out, both the drivers and the cars could suffer,” he also told us. Although Hyundai is now completely focused on the shift to gravel that the season will take after Japan, the Japanese event might not be as straightforward as it seems…