Toyota arrives in force in the Canary Islands with Katsuta as leader and the return of Ogier

The context is unprecedented and ideal for Takamoto Katsuta. The Japanese driver had never led the championship before the start of the 2026 season, and now he arrives in the Canary Islands with two consecutive victories under his belt—Kenya and Croatia—and a seven-point lead over his teammate Elfyn Evans. Oliver Solberg is thirteen points behind, and Sami Pajari is 29. The top four positions in the championship are occupied by drivers ToyotaThis illustrates the dominance of the GR Yaris Rally1 since the start of the season with four wins in four rallies. Katsuta knows, however, that the margin for error will be extremely small in the Canary Islands: "There is absolutely no margin for error, because everyone is driving at the absolute limit; therefore, the slightest mistake can be very costly, even if it is only a few tenths or a second."

The big comeback of this round is that of Sébastien OgierThe reigning world champion, who is competing in a partial program this season — as has been the case since 2022 — will not be satisfied with the same result as last year, which marked the event's return to WRC : "Hopefully we can fight for the win and do better than our second place finish last year." The Frenchman anticipates this, having been beaten in 2025 by a Kalle Rovanperä who was on a roll and set 15 fastest stage times in 18 special stages. The teams conducted tests on Spanish roads this week to prepare for the event, a surface radically different from that encountered in Croatia last week. Ogier — who did not participate in the event — found his bearings there: "We were able to work [on the surfaces] during our tests on the Spanish roads this week, which was a good opportunity to get back into the rhythm after a short break."

Clean, abrasive asphalt, the complete opposite of Croatia

The contrast between the two consecutive rallies is striking. Elfyn Evans sums up this difference in character: “In Croatia, the roads were really littered with gravel and dirt, whereas in the Canary Islands, the special stages are very clean and smooth, which offers much better grip. It’s the rally the closest thing to motor racing on our calendar, and that requires a setup closer to that of a race car: a low and stiff suspension. The Canary Islands benefit from asphalt composed partly of volcanic lava, thus creating a contrast with Croatia. Evans emphasizes a very different setup philosophy that limits the transfer of automatic responses from one event to the other, even though the two rallies are held two weeks apart.

Tire wear is another key factor on this abrasive surface. Solberg, who had never competed in the Canary Islands Rally in Rally1, arrives with the confidence of a good Croatian weekend despite a result below his expectations: “We had a great feeling in the car and the speed was really good on the cleaner stages of the final day. We were also able to gain more experience and feel with the hard tires, which will be the first choice given the hot and abrasive conditions in the Canary Islands.” An experience directly transferable to the island of Gran Canaria, where tire management will be crucial on Saturday's long special stages.

Pajari aims higher than in Croatia, Yamamoto for his first WRC2 points

Sami Pajari, who led much of the Rally Croatia before finishing second, believes the Canary Islands profile could suit him better than last week: “On paper, I think the Canary Islands could suit us even better. I find that my performances on asphalt have been better when the roads were cleaner, even in Croatia. We have a lot of positives to take advantage of in the Canaries and I hope we can have an even better rally.” The Finn is having a remarkable start to the season in the TGR-WRT2 colors, with three consecutive podium finishes in the last three events.

Yuki Yamamoto, from the TGR WRC Challenge program, is competing in his first round of the WRC2 championship this season. The Japanese driver had already raced in the Canary Islands last year without finishing, but he did so by accumulating valuable data on stages he is therefore partially familiar with. “Even though we didn’t finish, we gained valuable experience on the special stages and our times improved as the rally progressed. This will be the first rally where we are entered to score points in WRC2, so we want to aim for a good result.”

The team's deputy director, Juha Kankkunen, who knows the event from the inside — having competed in it many times as a driver — displays overall confidence despite the expected competition: “I’m sure the gaps between the different cars could be closer this time, as we saw in Croatia, but I feel pretty confident. Taka and Sami are both driving very well at the moment, and we also have Sébastien Ogier back with us, so I think we have a good chance.” Toyota arrives in the Canary Islands in a strong position, with a full team and high morale after its best-ever start to a WRC season. See you there from April 23rd to 26th for the Canary Islands Rally.

ALSO READ > Takamoto Katsuta wins in Croatia after a Hitchcockian scenario