The 2021 FIA World Rally Championship was the forty-ninth season of the
World Rally Championship
The World Rally Championship (abbreviated as WRC) is the highest level of global competition in the motorsport discipline of rallying, owned and governed by the FIA. There are separate championships for drivers, co-drivers, manufacturers and t ...
, an
auto racing
Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition.
Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organise ...
competition recognised by the
Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile
The Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA; en, International Automobile Federation) is an association established on 20 June 1904 to represent the interests of motoring organisations and motor car users. It is the governing body for ...
(FIA) as the highest class of international
rallying
Rally is a wide-ranging form of motorsport with various competitive motoring elements such as speed tests (often called ''rally racing),'' navigation tests, or the ability to reach waypoints or a destination at a prescribed time or average speed. ...
. Teams and crews competed in twelve rallies for the
World Rally Championships for Drivers,
Co-driver
A co-driver is the navigator of a rally car in the sport of rallying, who sits in the front passenger seat. The co-driver's job is to navigate, commonly by reading off a set of pacenotes to the driver (what lies ahead, where to turn, the severity ...
s and
Manufacturers
Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer to a range ...
. Crews were free to compete in cars complying with
World Rally Car
A World Rally Car is a racing automobile built to the specific regulations set by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) and designed for competition in the World Rally Championship (WRC). The cars were introduced in 1997 as a repl ...
,
Rally Pyramid
The FIA Rally Pyramid is the collective description and organisation of championships, car performance classes and driver aptitude in international rallying. In 2019 the FIA rally commission presented a radical overhaul to the rally pyramid to int ...
and
Group R
In relation to motorsport governed by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, Group R refers to a set of regulations providing production-derived vehicles for rally competition. The Group R regulations were created in 2008 as a gradual ...
regulations; however, only manufacturers competing with World Rally Cars
homologated
Homologation (Greek ''homologeo'', ὁμολογέω, "to agree") is the granting of approval by an official authority. This may be a court of law, a government department, or an academic or professional body, any of which would normally work f ...
under regulations introduced in
2017
File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...
were eligible to score points in the Manufacturers' championship.
The championship began in January 2021 with the
Rallye Monte-Carlo
The Monte Carlo Rally or Rallye Monte-Carlo (officially ''Rallye Automobile de Monte-Carlo'') is a rallying event organised each year by the Automobile Club de Monaco. The rally now takes place along the French Riviera in Monaco and southeas ...
and concluded in November 2021 with
Rally Monza. The series was supported by the
World Rally Championship-2
The FIA WRC2 (previously also known as World Rally Championship 2 and WRC 2), is a support championship of the World Rally Championship. The calendar consists of the same rallies and stages as the main class and crews usually compete immediately ...
and
World Rally Championship-3
The FIA WRC3 is a support championship of the World Rally Championship. The calendar consists of the same rallies and stages as the parent series and crews usually compete immediately after WRC2 entrants. Entry into WRC3 is limited to cars tha ...
categories at every round of the championship and by the
Junior World Rally Championship
The FIA Junior WRC, also known as JWRC and previously known as Junior World Rally Championship, is an international rallying competition restricted to drivers under 29 years old. The championship currently consists of five select rallies of th ...
at selected events.
Sébastien Ogier
Sébastien Ogier (born 17 December 1983) is a French rally driver, competing for the Toyota Gazoo Racing Team in the World Rally Championship (WRC), who is teamed with the co-driver Julien Ingrassia. He has won the World Rally Drivers' Champions ...
and
Julien Ingrassia
Julien Ingrassia (born 26 November 1979) is a retired French rally co-driver. Working with Sébastien Ogier, he became World Rally Champion in 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016 with Volkswagen Motorsport, 2017 and 2018 with M-Sport World Rally Team, ...
were the defending drivers' and co-drivers' champions, having secured their seventh championship titles at the
2020 Rally Monza.
Hyundai Hyundai is a South Korean industrial conglomerate ("chaebol"), which was restructured into the following groups:
* Hyundai Group, parts of the former conglomerate which have not been divested
** Hyundai Mobis, Korean car parts company
** Hyundai ...
were the defending manufacturers' champions and were defending their manufacturers' title for the second consecutive year.
At the conclusion of the championship, Ogier and Ingrassia won their eighth world titles after winning the
2021 Rally Monza.
Elfyn Evans
Elfyn Rhys Evans (born 28 December 1988) is a Welsh rally driver. He is currently teamed with Scott Martin and is competing for Toyota Gazoo Racing in the World Rally Championship.
Career
The son of 1996 British Rally Championship Champion ...
and
Scott Martin finished second, trailing by twenty-three points.
Thierry Neuville
Thierry Jean Neuville (born 16 June 1988) is a Belgian rally driver who is competing in the World Rally Championship for Hyundai Motorsport. During his career, he has finished as runner-up in the drivers' championship five times (2013, 2016–201 ...
and
Martijn Wydaeghe
Martijn Wydaeghe (born 1 September 1992) is a Belgian rallying co-driver. He is partnered with Thierry Neuville for Hyundai Motorsport in the World Rally Championship category.
Rally career
Wydaeghe made his WRC debut at the 2013 Rallye de Fran ...
were third, a further thirty-one points behind. In the manufacturers' championship,
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT is a World Rally Championship (WRC) team based in Finland that serves as Toyota's official factory team. Its team principal is former WRC driver Jari-Matti Latvala. The team made its début during the 2017 season, where i ...
clinched the title, a massive fifty-nine-point lead over the defending manufacturer champion
Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT, with
M-Sport Ford WRT
The M-Sport Ford World Rally Team (formerly M-Sport World Rally Team, Qatar M-Sport World Rally Team and Stobart M-Sport Ford Rally Team) is the privately run World Rally Championship team of M-Sport, the firm run by Malcolm Wilson that was previ ...
in third.
Calendar
The 2021 championship was contested over twelve rounds in
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
and
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
:
The following rounds were included on the original calendar published by
WRC Promoter GmbH
The World Rally Championship (abbreviated as WRC) is the highest level of global competition in the motorsport discipline of rallying, owned and governed by the FIA. There are separate championships for drivers, co-drivers, manufacturers and te ...
, but were later cancelled:
Calendar changes
With the addition of
Rally Chile to the calendar in
2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
, the FIA opened the tender process for new events to join the championship in 2020.
Three events were successful, but the championship was affected by a series of cancellations in 2019 and 2020 that necessitated changes to the 2021 calendar:
*
Rally Catalunya
The Rally Catalunya (formerly: Rallye Catalunya) is a rally competition held in Catalonia region of Spain, on the World Rally Championship schedule. Now held on the wide, smooth and sweeping asphalt roads around the town of Salou, Costa Daura ...
returned to the championship. The rally was removed from the
2020 schedule as part of an event-sharing agreement that would see it removed from the calendar for one year, but was guaranteed a spot on the calendar for the next two.
The rally returned to running exclusively on
tarmac Tarmac may refer to:
Engineered surfaces
* Tarmacadam, a mainly historical tar-based material for macadamising road surfaces, patented in 1902
* Asphalt concrete, a macadamising material using asphalt instead of tar which has largely superseded ta ...
roads for the first time since .
*
Rally Chile was due to return after a one-year absence. The rally had been included on the original draft of the 2020 calendar, but was later cancelled in the face of
ongoing civil unrest in the country.
Organisers of the event negotiated a return to the calendar for the 2021 championship, but it was again cancelled due to continued travel and other restrictions amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Acropolis Rally
The Acropolis Rally of Greece ( el, Ράλλυ Ακρόπολις) is a rally competition that is part of the World Rally Championship (WRC). The rally is held on very dusty, rough, rocky and fast mountain roads in mainland Greece, usually duri ...
is set to replace the rally after a seven-year absence on the calendar.
*
Rally Croatia made its championship debut, replacing
Rally Mexico
Rally Mexico, formerly known as Rally America is a round of the FIA World Rally Championship. The rally entered the championship schedule in the 2004 season. The event's itinerary is based in the state of Guanajuato. The stages take place in t ...
.
Croatia thus became the 34th country to host a
World Rally Championship round. It was based in
Zagreb
Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slop ...
, and ran on tarmac roads.
*
Rally Deutschland
The ADAC Rallye Deutschland is a rally event held in Germany. The event was first held in 1982 and originally hosted by e.g. Frankfurt, Mainz and Koblenz. In 2000, the rally was relocated to the region around Trier. Previously part of the Europ ...
was removed from the calendar. The event had
planned to run in 2020, but was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
It was not included on the 2021 calendar.
* The Rallies of
Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
and
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
also returned to the championship after a one-year absence. The 2020 events were cancelled
in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
*
Rally GB
Wales Rally GB was the most recent iteration of the United Kingdom's premier international motor rally, which ran under various names since the first event held in 1932. It was consistently a round of the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) calen ...
was replaced by the
Ypres Rally
The Belgium Ypres Westhoek Rally (BYWR) founded by Frans Thévelin in 1965 is one of the most famous rallies in the European Rally Championship, the Belgian Rally Championship, the British Rally Championship, and the Intercontinental Rally Challen ...
in Belgium.
Rally GB had originally planned to move from Wales to Northern Ireland, but the event was replaced when organisers were unable to come to an agreement with the government of Northern Ireland to support the rally.
*
Rally Japan
Rally Japan (ラリージャパン) is a rally competition held in Hokkaidō, Japan. The event made its debut in the FIA World Rally Championship during the 2004 season. From 2004 to 2007, the event was held on the twisty and narrow gravel roads ...
was scheduled to return to the calendar for the first time since ,
but it was ultimately called off due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
.
The rally was also originally included on the 2020 calendar, but was also cancelled because of the pandemic. Rally Monza was confirmed to hold the season finale for the second year in a row.
* The
Safari Rally
The Safari Rally is a rally held in Kenya. It was first held in 1953 as a celebration of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. The event was part of the World Rally Championship from 1973 until 2002, before returning in 2021. It is historically r ...
was run as a World Championship event for the first time since . The event was based in the Kenyan capital
Nairobi
Nairobi ( ) is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The name is derived from the Maasai phrase ''Enkare Nairobi'', which translates to "place of cool waters", a reference to the Nairobi River which flows through the city. The city proper ha ...
and featured stages around
Lake Naivasha
Lake Naivasha is a freshwater lake in Kenya, outside the town of Naivasha in Nakuru County, which lies north west of Nairobi. It is part of the Great Rift Valley. The name derives from the local Maasai name ''Nai'posha'', meaning "rough wate ...
.
The event had been planned to make its return to the championship in 2020, but was cancelled in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
*
Rally Sweden
The Rally Sweden ( sv, Svenska rallyt), formerly the International Swedish Rally, and later the Uddeholm Swedish Rally, is an automobile rally competition held in February in Värmland, Sweden and relocated to Umeå in 2022. First held in 1950, ...
was included on the first draft of the calendar with its traditional February date,
but was cancelled before the start of the season due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
.
The
Arctic Rally
Arctic Rally, currently Arctic Lapland Rally and also known as Tunturiralli, is an annual rally competition held on ice- and snow-covered roads in Rovaniemi, Lapland, Finland. It has been organized continuously since 1966. In 2021, a separate ev ...
in northern Finland was chosen as a replacement to ensure that a winter rally was included on the calendar.
In light of the disruption caused by the pandemic in 2020 and in anticipation of further delays, the calendar included an additional six reserve rounds that could be included in the event of rallies being cancelled. These events include rallies in
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
,
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
and Latvia.
The Ypres Rally had also been included on this reserve list before it replaced Rally GB,
so as the Acropolis Rally and Rally Monza.
Entries
Four teams from three manufacturers contested the 2021 World Rally Championship for Manufacturers, enlisting the following crews for each round as detailed. All crews use tyres provided by
Pirelli
Pirelli & C. S.p.A. is a multinational tyre manufacturer based in Milan, Italy. The company, which has been listed on the Milan Stock Exchange since 1922, is the 6th-largest tyre manufacturer and is focused on the consumer production of tyre ...
.
The below crews are not entered to score manufacturer points and are entered in World Rally Cars as privateers or under arrangement with the manufacturers.
In detail
M-Sport Ford WRT
The M-Sport Ford World Rally Team (formerly M-Sport World Rally Team, Qatar M-Sport World Rally Team and Stobart M-Sport Ford Rally Team) is the privately run World Rally Championship team of M-Sport, the firm run by Malcolm Wilson that was previ ...
only entered two full-time entries in 2021.
The first was crewed by
Gus Greensmith
Fergus "Gus" Greensmith (born 26 December 1996) is a British rally driver.
Rally career
Greensmith's family owns fuel and lubricants distributor Crown Oil. A former youth goalkeeper for Manchester City F.C. and karter before moving into the r ...
and
Elliott Edmondson
Elliott Edmondson (born 29 August 1994) is a British rally co-driver. Currently, he is the co-driver of Oliver Solberg for Hyundai Motorsport in the World Rally Championship
The World Rally Championship (abbreviated as WRC) is the highest l ...
, who contested selected rallies for the team in 2019 and 2020. Edmondson was later replaced by
Chris Patterson.
Stuart Loudon became Greensmith's third co-driver of the season, when Patterson was absent in
Sardinia
Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...
due to personal reasons. Greensmith and Patterson parted away after
Rally de Catalunya
The Rally Catalunya (formerly: Rallye Catalunya) is a rally competition held in Catalonia region of Spain, on the World Rally Championship schedule. Now held on the wide, smooth and sweeping asphalt roads around the town of Salou, Costa Daurad ...
as Patterson decided to retire from competition.
Jonas Andersson is confirmed to co-drive with Greensmith in the season finale. The second car was shared by two crews; one made up of World Rally Championship-2 graduates
Adrien Fourmaux
Adrien Fourmaux (born 3 May 1995) is a French rally driver. Currently, He drives for M-Sport Ford in the WRC-RC1 category.
Rally career
After winning the Junior category of the 2018 French Rally Championship, Adrien Fourmaux made his WRC deb ...
and
Renaud Jamoul
Renaud Jamoul (born 10 June 1984) is a Belgian rallying co-driver. He partnered with Adrien Fourmaux for M-Sport Ford World Rally Team in the World Rally Championship and World Rally Championship-2 categories in 2019-2021. Mid 2021, he was repla ...
, while the other was led by
Teemu Suninen
Teemu Suninen (born February 1, 1994) is a Finnish rally driver. Suninen was driving for Malcolm Wilson's M-Sport WRT in WRC between 2017 and 2021. His manager is Timo Jouhki.
Rally career
Suninen won the WRC-3 class in the 2014 Rally Finl ...
, who was partnered by
Mikko Markkula
Mikko Markkula (born 3 January 1981) is a Finnish rally co-driver.
Rally career
Mikko Markkula began his rally career in 2001, co-driving for several drivers in the World Rally Championship.
From 2007 to 2011, he was the co-driver of Juho H ...
.
However, Suninen announced that he quited from the team by mid season. Fourmaux split away with Jamoul during the season.
Alexandre Coria
Alexandre Coria (born 22 January 1993) is a French rally co-driver. He is the co-driver of Adrien Fourmaux for M-Sport Ford in the World Rally Championship
The World Rally Championship (abbreviated as WRC) is the highest level of global co ...
became Fourmaux's new co-driver.
Esapekka Lappi
Esapekka Lappi (born 17 January 1991) is a Finnish rally driver. He is the 2012 Finnish Rally Champion, 2014 European Rally Champion and the 2016 WRC-2 Champion.
Career 2012
Lappi won the 2012 Finnish Rally Championship with Ford Fiesta S200 ...
and
Janne Ferm
Janne Ferm (born 29 August 1980) is a Finnish rally co-driver. He is currently teamed with Esapekka Lappi and is competing for Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT in the World Rally Championship.
Rally career
Janne Ferm began his rally career in 2007, ...
, who drove for M-Sport in 2020, left the team.
The two later joined
World Rally Championship-2
The FIA WRC2 (previously also known as World Rally Championship 2 and WRC 2), is a support championship of the World Rally Championship. The calendar consists of the same rallies and stages as the main class and crews usually compete immediately ...
team
Movisport.
Hyundai Hyundai is a South Korean industrial conglomerate ("chaebol"), which was restructured into the following groups:
* Hyundai Group, parts of the former conglomerate which have not been divested
** Hyundai Mobis, Korean car parts company
** Hyundai ...
retained the line-up of
Ott Tänak
Ott Tänak (; born 15 October 1987) is an Estonian rally driver and the 2019 World Rally Champion. He is currently teamed with Martin Järveoja and is competing for Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT.
Tänak achieved his maiden drivers' world title in t ...
and
Martin Järveoja
Martin Järveoja (; born 18 August 1987) is an Estonian rally co-driver. He is currently teamed with Ott Tänak and is competing for Hyundai in the World Rally Championship.
Rally career
He is the son of Estonian politician Toomas Järveoja, an ...
.
Thierry Neuville
Thierry Jean Neuville (born 16 June 1988) is a Belgian rally driver who is competing in the World Rally Championship for Hyundai Motorsport. During his career, he has finished as runner-up in the drivers' championship five times (2013, 2016–201 ...
also retained with the team, but he ended his ten-year partnership with
Nicolas Gilsoul
Nicolas Gilsoul (born 5 February 1982) is a Belgian rally co-driver. He is the former co-driver for Thierry Neuville. .
Martijn Wydaeghe
Martijn Wydaeghe (born 1 September 1992) is a Belgian rallying co-driver. He is partnered with Thierry Neuville for Hyundai Motorsport in the World Rally Championship category.
Rally career
Wydaeghe made his WRC debut at the 2013 Rallye de Fran ...
became Neuville's new co-driver. The team's third entry was shared between crews led by
Dani Sordo
Daniel "Dani" Sordo Castillo (born 2 May 1983) is a Spanish rally driver. He competes in the World Rally Championship for Hyundai Motorsport. He achieved his first WRC victory at the 2013 Rallye Deutschland.
Career
Sordo began in motocross whe ...
and
Craig Breen
Craig Breen (born 2 February 1990) is an Irish rally driver, who competes part time in the Hyundai team in the WRC (World Rally Championship). He was the 2012 WRC Super 2000 world rally champion, scoring class wins in the Monte Carlo Rally, ...
. Sordo formed a new partnership with new
co-driver
A co-driver is the navigator of a rally car in the sport of rallying, who sits in the front passenger seat. The co-driver's job is to navigate, commonly by reading off a set of pacenotes to the driver (what lies ahead, where to turn, the severity ...
Borja Rozada
Borja Rozada (born 16 September 1981) is a Spanish rallying co-driver. He is partnered with Dani Sordo for Hyundai Motorsport in the World Rally Championship category.
Rally career
Rozada made his WRC debut at the 2007 Rally de Portugal. His be ...
after the
Monte Carlo Rally
The Monte Carlo Rally or Rallye Monte-Carlo (officially ''Rallye Automobile de Monte-Carlo'') is a rallying event organised each year by the Automobile Club de Monaco. The rally now takes place along the French Riviera in Monaco and southeast ...
as
Carlos del Barrio
Carlos del Barrio (born 15 August 1968) is a Spanish rally co-driver. He is currently teamed with Dani Sordo and is competing for Hyundai in the World Rally Championship.
Rally career
Carlos del Barrio began his rally career in 1991, co-driving ...
moved to co-drive with
Fabrizio Zaldívar in the
WRC-3
The FIA WRC3 is a support championship of the World Rally Championship. The calendar consists of the same rallies and stages as the parent series and crews usually compete immediately after WRC2 entrants. Entry into WRC3 is limited to cars tha ...
category. However, their partnership only lasted three rounds, with
Cándido Carrera replaced Rozada. Nine-time World Champion
Sébastien Loeb
Sébastien Loeb (; born 26 February 1974) is a French professional rally, racing and rallycross driver. He is the most successful driver in the World Rally Championship (WRC), having won the world championship a record nine times in a row. He h ...
left Hyundai to join Bahrain Raid Xtreme team in the
2021 Dakar Rally
The 2021 Dakar Rally was a rally raid event held in Saudi Arabia and the 43rd edition of the Dakar Rally. The event was held for 14 days, starting from 3 January and ended 15 January 2021. It was the second time Saudi Arabia had hosted the event, ...
and
Team X44
X44 (currently competing as X44 Vida Carbon Racing for sponsorship reasons) is an Extreme E racing team. The team was founded by 7 time Formula One World Champion, Sir Lewis Hamilton, and takes part in the series that is highlighting the impacts ...
in the
Extreme E
Extreme E is an FIA-sanctioned international off-road racing series that uses spec silhouette electric SUVs to race in remote parts of the world, such as the Saudi Arabian desert or the Arctic. All racing locations are chosen to raise awareness ...
electric rally raid series.
Tänak is confirmed to miss the season's finale for family reasons. Suninen, who left M-Sport and competed for Hyundai in
the WRC-2 category in
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
, replaced the Estonian in
Monza
Monza (, ; lmo, label=Lombard language, Lombard, Monça, locally ; lat, Modoetia) is a city and ''comune'' on the River Lambro, a tributary of the Po River, Po in the Lombardy region of Italy, about north-northeast of Milan. It is the capit ...
.
Hyundai's second team,
Hyundai 2C Competition, entered an
i20 Coupe WRC for
Pierre-Louis Loubet
Pierre-Louis Loubet (born 18 February 1997) is a French rally driver. He is the 2019 World Rally Championship 2 Champion. He is the son of the 1989 European Rally Champion Yves Loubet.
Career Early career
Loubet started karting at 7 yea ...
and
Vincent Landais
Vincent Landais (born 17 October 1991) is a French rally co-driver. He is the co-driver of the French rally driver Sébastien Ogier, racing for Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT in the World Rally Championship.
Rally career
Landais and Loubet started in 2 ...
at every round of the championship. Loubet and Landais had previously contested three events with the team in 2020.
Florian Haut-Labourdette later replaced Landais to co-drive with Loubet since
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
. However, Loubet's full-season programme was brought to an early end as he suffered a
hip
In vertebrate anatomy, hip (or "coxa"Latin ''coxa'' was used by Celsus in the sense "hip", but by Pliny the Elder in the sense "hip bone" (Diab, p 77) in medical terminology) refers to either an anatomical region or a joint.
The hip region is ...
injury after being involving in a car accident.
Junior World Rally Champion Nil Solans
Nil Solans Baldó (born 14 April 1992) is a Spanish rally driver.
Biography
Solans won the Junior World Rally Championship and WRC-3 in 2017 He also was the winner of the GSeries Andorra three years in a row (2015, 2016 and 2017), champion of ...
made his top-tier debut in
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
as a replacement to the injured Loubet with
Marc Martí
Marc Martí Moreno (born 1 October 1966) is a Spanish rally co-driver.
Biography
He debuted in the World Rally Championship (WRC) as a co-driver to Oriol Gómez in 1992. In the 1999 season, he began his partnership with Jesús Puras and the ...
.
Oliver Solberg
Oliver Solberg (born 23 September 2001) is a Sweden, Swedish-Norway, Norwegian rally (sports), rally driver. He is the son of the 2003 World Rally Championship, 2003 List of World Rally Championship Drivers' champions, World Rally Champion, Pett ...
and
Aaron Johnston
Aaron Johnston is an American author, comics writer, and film producer.
Johnston was an associate producer on the movie ''Ender's Game'', including a cameo appearance as an International Fleet officer. He co-authored with Orson Scott Card the Fi ...
made their
World Rally Car
A World Rally Car is a racing automobile built to the specific regulations set by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) and designed for competition in the World Rally Championship (WRC). The cars were introduced in 1997 as a repl ...
debut at the
Arctic Rally
Arctic Rally, currently Arctic Lapland Rally and also known as Tunturiralli, is an annual rally competition held on ice- and snow-covered roads in Rovaniemi, Lapland, Finland. It has been organized continuously since 1966. In 2021, a separate ev ...
. However, Johnston was replaced by
Sebastian Marshall
Sebastian Marshall (born 29 May 1988) is a British rally co-driver.
Rally career
Sebastian Marshall began his rally career in 2005, co-driving for several drivers. In the 2008 Rallye Deutschland, he made his WRC debut, where he partnered Ric ...
at the weekend after testing positive for
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
. Solberg announced later in the season that the partnership with Johnston ended.
American Rally Association
The American Rally Association is a 501(c)(3) non-profit stage rallying sanctioning body in the United States. The organization sanctions the American Rally Association Presented by DirtFish National Championship. It is currently managed by th ...
champion
Craig Drew
Craig Drew (born 21 June 1983) is a British rally co-driver. He has won eight American Rally Association championships alongside David Higgins for Subaru Rally Team USA. He co-drove for Oliver Solberg in the 2021 World Rally Championship with H ...
took over the seat in
Catalunya
Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy.
Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the northe ...
, before Edmondson cooperated with Solberg in
Monza
Monza (, ; lmo, label=Lombard language, Lombard, Monça, locally ; lat, Modoetia) is a city and ''comune'' on the River Lambro, a tributary of the Po River, Po in the Lombardy region of Italy, about north-northeast of Milan. It is the capit ...
.
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT is a World Rally Championship (WRC) team based in Finland that serves as Toyota's official factory team. Its team principal is former WRC driver Jari-Matti Latvala. The team made its début during the 2017 season, where i ...
was planned to introduce a new car based on the
Toyota GR Yaris
The is a performance-oriented variant of the XP210 series Yaris supermini/subcompact hatchback, in a segment commonly called the hot hatch. The vehicle is manufactured by Toyota with assistance from the company's Gazoo Racing (GR) division an ...
,
an "
homologation
Homologation (Greek ''homologeo'', ὁμολογέω, "to agree") is the granting of approval by an official authority. This may be a court of law, a government department, or an academic or professional body, any of which would normally work fr ...
special", or road-going version of a car specifically designed for competition and with production limited to the minimum number required to meet homologation requirements. However, the team later announced that it had abandoned development the GR Yaris, citing the effect of the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
on the automotive industry and the costs of developing the car when new regulations were due to be introduced in .
Tommi Mäkinen
Tommi Antero Mäkinen (; born 26 June 1964) is a Finnish racing executive and former driver.
Mäkinen is one of the most successful WRC drivers of all time, ranking fifth in rally wins (24) and third in championships (4), tied with Juha Kankkune ...
stepped down from Toyota's team principal to become the company's motorsport advisor. Former driver
Jari-Matti Latvala
Jari-Matti Latvala (born 3 April 1985) is a Finnish rally driver who has competed in the World Rally Championship (WRC). His co-driver for most of his career was Miikka Anttila, who co-drove for Latvala between the 2003 Rallye Deutschland and 2019 ...
was named to succeed Mäkinen's role.
Reigning
World Drivers' Champion Sébastien Ogier
Sébastien Ogier (born 17 December 1983) is a French rally driver, competing for the Toyota Gazoo Racing Team in the World Rally Championship (WRC), who is teamed with the co-driver Julien Ingrassia. He has won the World Rally Drivers' Champions ...
announced that he would retire from full-time competition at the end of the
2020 championship, but his retirement was delayed when he renewed a one-year deal with Toyota.
Ogier explained that his decision to stay in the sport was because the shortened
2020 championship was not how he wanted his career to end. The team retained the pairings of
Elfyn Evans
Elfyn Rhys Evans (born 28 December 1988) is a Welsh rally driver. He is currently teamed with Scott Martin and is competing for Toyota Gazoo Racing in the World Rally Championship.
Career
The son of 1996 British Rally Championship Champion ...
and
Scott Martin and of
Kalle Rovanperä
Kalle Rovanperä (; born 1 October 2000 in Jyväskylä) is a Finnish professional rally driver, who competes in the World Rally Championship for Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT, alongside co-driver Jonne Halttunen. He is the reigning World Champion. ...
and
Jonne Halttunen
Jonne Halttunen (born 13 December 1985) is a Finnish rally co-driver. Currently, he is the co-driver of Kalle Rovanperä, driving the Toyota GR Yaris Rally1. Previously, they represented Škoda Motorsport to participate in the World Rally Champi ...
.
Takamoto Katsuta
Takamoto Katsuta (勝田 貴元, ''Katsuta Takamoto'', born 17 March 1993) is a Japanese rally driver. He currently rallies for the Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT NG in the World Rally Championship. He rose to prominence after taking a surprise victor ...
and
Daniel Barritt
Daniel Barritt (born 23 August 1980) is a British World Rally Championship co-driver from England.
Background
Barritt was born in Burnley, UK. His family has been involved in rallying for three generations. His grandfather, for example, was a ...
also remained with the team to contest a full-time campaign in a fourth car.
Barritt missed several events following back and neck injuries suffered in
Estonia
Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...
.
Keaton Williams joined Katsuta as substitute co-driver in
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
before a family emergency forced him to withdraw from in the next two events. Johnston became Katsuta's third co-driver following the departure with Solberg, but soon succeeded by Edmondson in the following round.
Changes
Technical regulations
Pirelli
Pirelli & C. S.p.A. is a multinational tyre manufacturer based in Milan, Italy. The company, which has been listed on the Milan Stock Exchange since 1922, is the 6th-largest tyre manufacturer and is focused on the consumer production of tyre ...
has become the championships' sole nominated tyre supplier with the removal of
Michelin
Michelin (; ; full name: ) is a French multinational tyre manufacturing company based in Clermont-Ferrand in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes ''région'' of France. It is the second largest tyre manufacturer in the world behind Bridgestone and la ...
and
Yokohama
is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of To ...
.
Under the terms of the agreement, Pirelli will supply tyres to all entrants of four-wheel drive cars.
Sporting regulations
The season saw the creation of the World Rally Championship for Teams, a new championship title that existed alongside the
World Rally Championships for Drivers,
Co-drivers and
Manufacturers
Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer to a range ...
. A team taking part in the Teams' championship was able to only score points in a rally if a manufacturer competing with the same make of car had been entered into the event. Teams that competed in the Teams' championship were required to take part in a minimum of seven rallies, one of which had to be outside Europe to be eligible for the championship.
As the
impact of the COVID-19 pandemic
As of 2022, the COVID‑19 pandemic is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‑19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS CoV‑2). Its impact has been broad, affecting general society, the ...
meant that only seven of the thirteen events planned for the 2020 championship took place, the World Motorsport Council passed a resolution declaring that for the drivers', co-drivers' and manufacturers' championship titles to be awarded a minimum of six rallies must be held.
Manufacturers were awarded
Power Stage
The Power Stage (abbreviated as PS) is a special stage that usually runs as the final stage of a rally in the World Rally Championship (WRC). Additional championship points are available to the fastest five crews through the stage regardless of ...
bonus points for the first time. The scoring system remains the same as that used by drivers and co-drivers, with five points awarded for the fastest manufacturer car down to one point for the fifth quickest. Only the two fastest drivers from a single manufacturer are eligible to score.
Season report
Opening rounds
The 2021 FIA World Rally Championship began in
Monaco
Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Lig ...
. The
Hyundai Hyundai is a South Korean industrial conglomerate ("chaebol"), which was restructured into the following groups:
* Hyundai Group, parts of the former conglomerate which have not been divested
** Hyundai Mobis, Korean car parts company
** Hyundai ...
crew of
Ott Tänak
Ott Tänak (; born 15 October 1987) is an Estonian rally driver and the 2019 World Rally Champion. He is currently teamed with Martin Järveoja and is competing for Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT.
Tänak achieved his maiden drivers' world title in t ...
and
Martin Järveoja
Martin Järveoja (; born 18 August 1987) is an Estonian rally co-driver. He is currently teamed with Ott Tänak and is competing for Hyundai in the World Rally Championship.
Rally career
He is the son of Estonian politician Toomas Järveoja, an ...
took an early lead, but their lead was wiped out when by a loss of power in
hairpins. The Estonian pair's rally was further hampered by two
punctures, which meant that they did not have enough rubber on one of their wheels for the car to be considered
road legal. Unable to complete the liaison between
special stages, Tänak and Järveoja were ruled out for the second consecutive year in Monte-Carlo. The
M-Sport
M-Sport is an auto racing team and motorsport engineering company headquartered at Dovenby Hall near Cockermouth, Cumbria, England, United Kingdom. Formed in 1979 by the World Rally Championship driver Malcolm Wilson, and originally known as ...
crew of
Teemu Suninen
Teemu Suninen (born February 1, 1994) is a Finnish rally driver. Suninen was driving for Malcolm Wilson's M-Sport WRT in WRC between 2017 and 2021. His manager is Timo Jouhki.
Rally career
Suninen won the WRC-3 class in the 2014 Rally Finl ...
and
Mikko Markkula
Mikko Markkula (born 3 January 1981) is a Finnish rally co-driver.
Rally career
Mikko Markkula began his rally career in 2001, co-driving for several drivers in the World Rally Championship.
From 2007 to 2011, he was the co-driver of Juho H ...
also retired from the rally when they crashed out on the very first stage of the event. Local heroes
Sébastien Ogier
Sébastien Ogier (born 17 December 1983) is a French rally driver, competing for the Toyota Gazoo Racing Team in the World Rally Championship (WRC), who is teamed with the co-driver Julien Ingrassia. He has won the World Rally Drivers' Champions ...
and
Julien Ingrassia
Julien Ingrassia (born 26 November 1979) is a retired French rally co-driver. Working with Sébastien Ogier, he became World Rally Champion in 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016 with Volkswagen Motorsport, 2017 and 2018 with M-Sport World Rally Team, ...
were the favourites for the weekend. Despite a
flat tire
A flat tire (British English: flat tyre) is a deflated pneumatic tyre, which can cause the rim of the wheel to ride on the tire tread or the ground potentially resulting in loss of control of the vehicle or irreparable damage to the tire. The mos ...
that lost the lead to their teammates
Elfyn Evans
Elfyn Rhys Evans (born 28 December 1988) is a Welsh rally driver. He is currently teamed with Scott Martin and is competing for Toyota Gazoo Racing in the World Rally Championship.
Career
The son of 1996 British Rally Championship Champion ...
and
Scott Martin, the reigning world champions set fastest stage time after fastest stage time to regain the top spot and eventually won their eighth Monte Carlo victory, a new record for wins in
Monte Carlo
Monte Carlo (; ; french: Monte-Carlo , or colloquially ''Monte-Carl'' ; lij, Munte Carlu ; ) is officially an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco, specifically the ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino is ...
.
They also became the first crew to win the rally with five different manufacturers. Evans and Martin finished second to complete a
Toyota
is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...
one-two. The Japanese manufacturer's party was further flourished by the dominance at the
Power Stage
The Power Stage (abbreviated as PS) is a special stage that usually runs as the final stage of a rally in the World Rally Championship (WRC). Additional championship points are available to the fastest five crews through the stage regardless of ...
, which saw them build a twenty-two-point lead over the reigning manufacturers' champions Hyundai.
The prior year's victor,
Thierry Neuville
Thierry Jean Neuville (born 16 June 1988) is a Belgian rally driver who is competing in the World Rally Championship for Hyundai Motorsport. During his career, he has finished as runner-up in the drivers' championship five times (2013, 2016–201 ...
, joined them on the podium with his new
co-driver
A co-driver is the navigator of a rally car in the sport of rallying, who sits in the front passenger seat. The co-driver's job is to navigate, commonly by reading off a set of pacenotes to the driver (what lies ahead, where to turn, the severity ...
Martijn Wydaeghe
Martijn Wydaeghe (born 1 September 1992) is a Belgian rallying co-driver. He is partnered with Thierry Neuville for Hyundai Motorsport in the World Rally Championship category.
Rally career
Wydaeghe made his WRC debut at the 2013 Rallye de Fran ...
, whose first ever podium in the championship.
The
Arctic Rally Finland saw the championship first visiting inside the
Arctic Circle
The Arctic Circle is one of the two polar circles, and the most northerly of the five major circles of latitude as shown on maps of Earth. Its southern equivalent is the Antarctic Circle.
The Arctic Circle marks the southernmost latitude at w ...
, where local favourites
Kalle Rovanperä
Kalle Rovanperä (; born 1 October 2000 in Jyväskylä) is a Finnish professional rally driver, who competes in the World Rally Championship for Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT, alongside co-driver Jonne Halttunen. He is the reigning World Champion. ...
and
Jonne Halttunen
Jonne Halttunen (born 13 December 1985) is a Finnish rally co-driver. Currently, he is the co-driver of Kalle Rovanperä, driving the Toyota GR Yaris Rally1. Previously, they represented Škoda Motorsport to participate in the World Rally Champi ...
were determined to win their first WRC event. However, their ambition was spoiled by Tänak and Järveoja, who benefited from a greater road position. The former world champions demonstrated brilliant pace throughout the weekend, leading the event from start to finish to win their first rally of the season. Unable to match the speed of Tänak and Järveoja, Rovanperä and Halttunen were threatened by Neuville and Wydaeghe going onto the final day. The battle for the runner-up spot would decide the championship leads. Eventually, the Finnish crew managed to edge the Belgian pair by 2.3 seconds as well as winning the
Power Stage
The Power Stage (abbreviated as PS) is a special stage that usually runs as the final stage of a rally in the World Rally Championship (WRC). Additional championship points are available to the fastest five crews through the stage regardless of ...
.
This was enough to ensure the twenty-year-old Rovanperä to become the youngest driver to lead the championship in the forty-nine-year history of the WRC.
Reigning world champions Ogier and Ingrassia had a weekend to forget. The French crew went into a snowbank 200 meters from the flying finish on Saturday's final test, which took them twenty minutes to free themselves from. They eventually limped home in twentieth place but did collect one consolation point form the Power Stage.
The third round of the season saw the championship held in
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
, the thirty-fourth country to host a WRC event. Rovanperä and Halttunen entered
the rally as championship leaders, but they crashed out on the very first stage of the rally. This gave Neuville and Wydaeghe a clean road, leading the rally onto Saturday. However, an incorrect tyre choice of hard and soft compound mixture plus brake issues on Saturday's morning loop saw them drop down to third. Ogier and Ingrassia became the new rally leaders, but a puncture meant their lead was limited to single-digits. Ogier and Ingrassia snatched the victory and reclaimed the championship leads.
0.6 second was the winning margin, making the rally
the third closest win in history after the
2011 Jordan Rally
The 2011 Jordan Rally was the fourth round of the 2011 World Rally Championship season. The rally took place over 14–16 April, and was based beside the Dead Sea, some from the country's capital, Amman. The rally was also be the second round o ...
and the
2007 Rally New Zealand
The 2007 Rally New Zealand (''37th Propecia Rally New Zealand''), 11th round of 2007 World Rally Championship, was run on 31 August to 2 September. After a tight battle for three days, Marcus Grönholm beat Sébastien Loeb for the win by 0.3 seco ...
. In addition to a full thirty championship points haul, the French pair also reached their 600th stage win milestone. With two 1–2 finishes in three rounds, Toyota held an early lead in the manufacturers' standings, twenty-seven points cleared of
Hyundai Hyundai is a South Korean industrial conglomerate ("chaebol"), which was restructured into the following groups:
* Hyundai Group, parts of the former conglomerate which have not been divested
** Hyundai Mobis, Korean car parts company
** Hyundai ...
.
Adrien Fourmaux
Adrien Fourmaux (born 3 May 1995) is a French rally driver. Currently, He drives for M-Sport Ford in the WRC-RC1 category.
Rally career
After winning the Junior category of the 2018 French Rally Championship, Adrien Fourmaux made his WRC deb ...
and
Renaud Jamoul
Renaud Jamoul (born 10 June 1984) is a Belgian rallying co-driver. He partnered with Adrien Fourmaux for M-Sport Ford World Rally Team in the World Rally Championship and World Rally Championship-2 categories in 2019-2021. Mid 2021, he was repla ...
made their World Rally Car debut with
M-Sport Ford this weekend. They posted several top-five stage times to record a remarkable fifth place.
Mid-season gravel events
Rally Portugal
The Rally de Portugal (formerly: Rallye de Portugal) is a rally competition held in Portugal. First held in 1967, the seventh running of the race, the 7º TAP Rallye de Portugal was the third event in the inaugural FIA World Rally Champi ...
marked the championship returned to the
gravel
Gravel is a loose aggregation of rock fragments. Gravel occurs naturally throughout the world as a result of sedimentary and erosive geologic processes; it is also produced in large quantities commercially as crushed stone.
Gravel is classifi ...
surface in over 200 days.
Hyundai Hyundai is a South Korean industrial conglomerate ("chaebol"), which was restructured into the following groups:
* Hyundai Group, parts of the former conglomerate which have not been divested
** Hyundai Mobis, Korean car parts company
** Hyundai ...
dominated the early stage of the rally, holding 1–2–3 after Friday's morning loop. The situation was looking good for the South Korean manufacturer until Neuville and Wydaeghe damaged their rear-right
suspension
Suspension or suspended may refer to:
Science and engineering
* Suspension (topology), in mathematics
* Suspension (dynamical systems), in mathematics
* Suspension of a ring, in mathematics
* Suspension (chemistry), small solid particles suspend ...
in a tight left-hander following an over-optimistic pacenote in the afternoon. Benefitting from their main rivals' retirements and a relative late road position, Evans and Martin won the rally, their first of the season.
Dani Sordo
Daniel "Dani" Sordo Castillo (born 2 May 1983) is a Spanish rally driver. He competes in the World Rally Championship for Hyundai Motorsport. He achieved his first WRC victory at the 2013 Rallye Deutschland.
Career
Sordo began in motocross whe ...
and new co-driver
Borja Rozada
Borja Rozada (born 16 September 1981) is a Spanish rallying co-driver. He is partnered with Dani Sordo for Hyundai Motorsport in the World Rally Championship category.
Rally career
Rozada made his WRC debut at the 2007 Rally de Portugal. His be ...
completed the event second overall to bring their team valuable points after a disaster weekend for Hyundai, while Ogier and Ingrassia rounded out of the podium.
Katsuta drove a clean and consistent rally, ensuring the Japanese driver a career-high fourth place.
The
Sardinia island rally witnessed another catastrophic weekend for Hyundai. Despite a dominant performance on Friday, the crews of Tänak and Järveoja and of Sordo and Rozada retired from Saturday due to rear suspension damage. Following Hyundai's double disasters, Ogier and Ingrassia took over the rally, with Evans and Martin covered second.
With another 1–2 finish, Toyota's lead over Hyundai extended to massive forty-nine points. Neuville and Wydaeghe were the only hope of Hyundai. The Belgian crew was struggling throughout the event and could only managed to finish third.
The
Safari Rally
The Safari Rally is a rally held in Kenya. It was first held in 1953 as a celebration of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. The event was part of the World Rally Championship from 1973 until 2002, before returning in 2021. It is historically r ...
in
Kenya
)
, national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
, ...
,
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
is renowned for impassable, hard to traverse, open, soft, bumpy, rocky and gravel roads. When the World Rally Championship returned to
Kenya
)
, national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
, ...
after nineteen years, nothing changed. Neuville and Wydaeghe retired from the lead on the final day with a suspension-collapsed issue. This meant for the third consecutive rally, a Hyundai retired from the top spot. Japanese driver Takamoto Katsuta became the new rally leader afterwards, leading a WRC event for the first in his career, but he and his co-driver Barritt were soon overhauled by a charging Ogier and Ingrassia, who were once down in seventh overall. The French crew eventually won the eventful rally to wrap up their fourth victory of the season, and held a commanding lead of thirty-four points in the drivers' and co-drivers' championships heading into the second half of the season. Katsuta secured his WRC podium alongside Barritt, with Tänak and Järveoja rounded out of the podium.
Halfway through the season, the championship's next stop was
Rally Estonia
Rally Estonia is a rallying event organised each year in Estonia. It is the largest and most high-profile motorsport event in the country and runs on smooth gravel roads in the south of the country, some of which are purpose-built for the rally. ...
. Ahead of home crowds, local favourites Tänak and Järveoja were keen to repeat their success one year ago. They initially led the rally, but double punctures on Friday's morning loop put them from heroes to zeroes as they run out of spare wheels. Following Tänak and Järveoja's issue, Rovanperä and Halttunen took the lead. Having fended off the pursuit of
Craig Breen
Craig Breen (born 2 February 1990) is an Irish rally driver, who competes part time in the Hyundai team in the WRC (World Rally Championship). He was the 2012 WRC Super 2000 world rally champion, scoring class wins in the Monte Carlo Rally, ...
and
Paul Nagle
Paul Nagle (born 29 August 1978) is an Irish rally co-driver. Drivers with whom he has teamed include Kris Meeke, Gareth MacHale and Craig Breen. , they claimed their maiden WRC win. At 20 years and 290 days, Rovanperä became
the youngest driver to win a WRC event, breaking the previous record of 22 years and 313 days held by
Jari-Matti Latvala
Jari-Matti Latvala (born 3 April 1985) is a Finnish rally driver who has competed in the World Rally Championship (WRC). His co-driver for most of his career was Miikka Anttila, who co-drove for Latvala between the 2003 Rallye Deutschland and 2019 ...
. Breen and Nagle achieved their first podium of the season by finishing second, with teammates Neuville and Wydaeghe rounded out of the podium with their fifth third place.
New and return rallies
The debut of
Ypres Rally
The Belgium Ypres Westhoek Rally (BYWR) founded by Frans Thévelin in 1965 is one of the most famous rallies in the European Rally Championship, the Belgian Rally Championship, the British Rally Championship, and the Intercontinental Rally Challen ...
on the calendar meant
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
became the thirty-fifth country to host a WRC event. The combination of
bridle path
A bridle path, also bridleway, equestrian trail, horse riding path, ride, bridle road, or horse trail, is a trail or a thoroughfare that is used by people riding on horses. Trails originally created for use by horses often now serve a wider r ...
and the famous
Spa-Francorchamps
The Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps (), frequently referred to as ''Spa'', is a motor-racing circuit located in Stavelot, Belgium. It is the current venue of the Formula One Belgian Grand Prix, hosting its first Grand Prix in 1925, and has he ...
circuit proved to be relentless for competitors. Local experience was the key to success, which was why local heroes Neuville and Wydaeghe came out in front, bagging an emotional home triumph. This was also the first career victory for Wydaeghe. The only crew who can match their blistering pace were their teammates Breen and Nagle. The Irish crew completed the weekend with another second place.
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
gave the championship a warm welcome as the
Acropolis Rally
The Acropolis Rally of Greece ( el, Ράλλυ Ακρόπολις) is a rally competition that is part of the World Rally Championship (WRC). The rally is held on very dusty, rough, rocky and fast mountain roads in mainland Greece, usually duri ...
returned to the calendar after eight years. Victory in the event belonged to Rovanperä and Halttunen, who steered out of trouble and bagged their second victory of the season. The result also saw Toyota extend their championship lead to a mighty fifty-seven points. With only three rounds to go, things were looking really promising for their championship bid.
Rally Finland
Rally Finland (formerly known as the Neste Rally Finland, Neste Oil Rally Finland, 1000 Lakes Rally and Rally of the Thousand Lakes; fi, Suomen ralli, sv, Finska rallyt) is a rally competition in the Finnish Lakeland in Central Finland. The ra ...
went ahead on the twenty-first birthday of Rovanperä, who was keen to win his home event. He and Halttunen were running in the front field until they hit with a large pile of gravel on Saturday morning. This caused significant damage to their Yaris, which led to their retirement from the day. Katsuta and new co-driver
Aaron Johnston
Aaron Johnston is an American author, comics writer, and film producer.
Johnston was an associate producer on the movie ''Ender's Game'', including a cameo appearance as an International Fleet officer. He co-authored with Orson Scott Card the Fi ...
also retired from the day when they ran too deep into a quick left-hander and clouted the bank on the right. Neuville and Wydaeghe's slim title hopes were completely shattered when they stopped halfway through the second test of the Patajoki stage following a compression broke the radiator and caused a water leak. Championship leaders Ogier and Ingrassia were struggled for pace all the weekend, and a one-minute time penalty for not fastening
crash helmet strap meant they were in a no men's land. Meanwhile, teammates Evans and Martin were out in front and ultimately won the rally as well as the Power Stage. The result saw Evans and Martin slashed the championship gap by a massive twenty points, trailing Ogier and Ingrassia by twenty-four points after the event.
Closing rounds
Although Neuville and Wydaeghe lost any chance to clinch the world titles coming into the event, they completely dominated the
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
tarmac, winning a total of ten special stages to grab their second victory of the season after overcoming a late
starter motor
A starter (also self-starter, cranking motor, or starter motor) is a device used to rotate (crank) an internal-combustion engine so as to initiate the engine's operation under its own power. Starters can be electric motor, electric, pneumatic ...
problem. Evans and Martin kept their title hopes alive as they outscored championship leaders Ogier and Ingrassia. The French crew was looking good to achieve a podium finish till an engine stall at Saturday's final test erased their gap over local heros Sordo and
Cándido Carrera and eventually got overhauled on Sunday morning. Katsuta and Johnston's hope of a good result was gone at the very first stage when their Yaris understeered into the barrier at the opening stage of Friday.
The championship was down to the wire as the season finale was again held at
Monza
Monza (, ; lmo, label=Lombard language, Lombard, Monça, locally ; lat, Modoetia) is a city and ''comune'' on the River Lambro, a tributary of the Po River, Po in the Lombardy region of Italy, about north-northeast of Milan. It is the capit ...
. Holding a healthy lead in the championship standings, championship leaders Ogier and Ingrassia immediately took the lead. Title rivals Evans and Martin passed Ogier and Ingrassia by the end of the first day, but soon lost it back to the French crew in the following morning loop. The top spot changed hands repeatedly. Eventually, Ogier and Ingrassia came out on top, winning their fifth rally of the season to bag their eighth world titles. Sordo and Carrera rounded out of the podium after teammates Neuville and Wydaeghe spun into
traffic barrier
Traffic barriers (sometimes called Armco barriers,AK Steel (formerly Armco) genericized trademark also known in North America as guardrails or guard rails and in Britain as crash barriers) keep vehicles within their roadway and prevent them from ...
on Saturday. Manufacturer-wise, Toyota won a total of nine victories out of twelve in comparison to Hyundai's three, which was enough for the Japanese team to clinch the title.
Results and standings
Season summary
Scoring system
Points were awarded to the top ten classified finishers in each event. 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 2017-specification World Rally Car. There were also five bonus points awarded to the winners of the
Power Stage
The Power Stage (abbreviated as PS) is a special stage that usually runs as the final stage of a rally in the World Rally Championship (WRC). Additional championship points are available to the fastest five crews through the stage regardless of ...
, four points for second place, three for third, two for fourth and one for fifth. Power Stage points were awarded in the drivers', co-drivers' and manufacturers' championships.
FIA World Rally Championship for Drivers
The driver who recorded a top-ten finish was taken into account for the championship regardless of the categories.
FIA World Rally Championship for Co-Drivers
The co-driver who recorded a top-ten finish was taken into account for the championship regardless of the categories.
FIA World Rally Championship for Manufacturers
Only the best two results of each manufacturer in the respective overall classification and
Power Stage
The Power Stage (abbreviated as PS) is a special stage that usually runs as the final stage of a rally in the World Rally Championship (WRC). Additional championship points are available to the fastest five crews through the stage regardless of ...
at each rally were taken into account for the championship.
Notes
References
External links
*
FIA World Rally Championship 2021at
eWRC-results.com
{{World championships in 2021
World Rally Championship
The World Rally Championship (abbreviated as WRC) is the highest level of global competition in the motorsport discipline of rallying, owned and governed by the FIA. There are separate championships for drivers, co-drivers, manufacturers and t ...
World Rally Championship
The World Rally Championship (abbreviated as WRC) is the highest level of global competition in the motorsport discipline of rallying, owned and governed by the FIA. There are separate championships for drivers, co-drivers, manufacturers and t ...
Rally
Rally or rallye may refer to:
Gatherings
* Demonstration (political), a political rally, a political demonstration of support or protest, march, or parade
* Pep rally, an event held at a United States school or college sporting event
Sports ...
World Rally Championship seasons