How can Elfyn Evans be crowned WRC champion as early as the Rally Japan?

Sixth in the first special stage of this Rally From Japan, Elfyn Evans is only eight-tenths of a second behind the provisional leader. After a first stage of less than 3 km, Kalle Rovanperä has indeed taken the lead in the standings, but nothing is decided yet, while Sébastien Ogier is currently fourth. Far from it, since 20 special stages are strewn across this 13th^e handle of WRC, while 19 still remain to be contested.

As for Elfyn Evans, he regained the overall lead after the Central Europe Rally. Taking advantage of Kalle Rovanperä's time loss in Chile and Sébastien Ogier's off-road excursion, despite Ogier being in contention for the win, the driver Toyota seems better positioned than ever to clinch his first title in the discipline. Having won in Japan in 2023 and 2024, he could indeed increase his lead before heading into the Saudi Arabian Rally. But if he does have a lead, will it be enough?

Elfyn Evans still needs to make the effort

While the task isn't impossible for Elfyn Evans, it certainly seems difficult, unless his success hinges on poor results from his main rivals. The Welshman needs to score 23 more points than Kalle Rovanperä and Sébastien Ogier on this 13th stage.^e a round to secure the title even before setting foot in Saudi Arabia. This suggests, in particular, an overall victory at the end of Rally Japan for Elfyn Evans, or a second-place finish combined with additional points collected on Sunday.

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To this must be added the fact that neither Sébastien Ogier nor Kalle Rovanperä finished on the podium of this rally, making Elfyn Evans' performance sufficient should he win and dominate. While unlikely at present, this scenario primarily means that, with a 13-point lead over his two closest rivals, Elfyn Evans has a clear opportunity to retain the WRC lead before the final round. Twice runner-up in Chile and Central Europe, he is known for his consistency and can afford such a strategy given his early-season advantage. However, a mistake on his part could completely reshuffle the competition. At this stage of the season, every special stage can prove decisive. The next one will start at 23:20 PM (French time), and a recap of the night's events will be available this Friday morning on AUTOhebdo.fr.