Sébastien Ogier survived a heart-stopping final stage scare to clinch a record fifth Rally Italia Sardegna victory, fending off a charging Ott Tänak to win by just 7.9sec on Sunday afternoon.
Twelve months on from a final-stage puncture that cost him victory to Tänak by just 0.2sec - the joint closest finish in WRC history - Ogier was again at the centre of late drama on the Mediterranean island.
The Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 driver appeared set for a relatively calm run to the finish after building a 17.1sec buffer ahead of the Wolf Power Stage, but an overshoot in the final kilometres saw that gap slashed by more than half. Ogier was forced to stop and reverse after his car failed to turn into a tight corner carved with deep ruts.
"In the ruts, I just couldn't turn the car," Ogier explained. "There was no speed at all, so I didn't try to force it and hit it - I preferred to stop and reverse. But yeah, not ideal. Still, it was enough to win."
It was a victory built on persistence and poise rather than outright dominance. The eight-time world champion moved to the front during Friday's brutal opening leg - one that saw multiple Rally1 crews fall by the wayside - before carefully managing the gap to Tänak across the weekend.
"There are many places I've won several times," he added. "It's just a type of rally I like - where precise driving is needed, but also smoothness for tyre management. Thanks to the team - great turnaround after Portugal in terms of speed and set-up, so good job."
It marked back-to-back wins for the Frenchman following his Rally de Portugal triumph last month, and his third victory of the season from just four starts—propelling him firmly into the title fight.
Elfyn Evans, who ended the rally fourth, saw his championship lead trimmed to just 17 points over team-mate Ogier, while Kalle Rovanperä—42.6sec behind Tänak in third overall - dropped to third in the standings. Tänak and Thierry Neuville remain fourth and fifth respectively after round six of 14.
Toyota ace Rovanperä delivered a measured drive to complete the podium after climbing from fifth during Saturday's drama-filled stages. The Finn also netted maximum Super Sunday points, including the Wolf Power Stage win.
Evans' fourth place came after recovering from a wheel change delay on Saturday, while Takamoto Katsuta and Oliver Solberg rounded out the top six.
Sami Pajari sustained a damaged rear driveshaft after a spin on Sunday's opener and slipped from fifth to seventh by the finish. Nikolay Gryazin was eighth, while Roberto Daprà and Kajetan Kajetanowicz capitalised on a final-day crash for Emil Lindholm to fill out the remainder of the top 10 and the leading two positions in WRC2.
PROVISIONAL FINAL CLASSIFICATION, RALLY ITALIA SARDEGNA
1 Sébastien Ogier/Vincent Landais (Toyota GR YARIS Rally1) 3h34m24.5s
2 Ott Tänak/Martin Järveoja (Hyundai i20 N Rally1) +7.9s
3 Kalle Rovanperä/Jonne Halttunen (Toyota GR YARIS Rally1) +50.5s
4 Elfyn Evans/Scott Martin (Toyota GR YARIS Rally1) +5m05.7s
5 Takamoto Katsuta/Aaron Johnston (Toyota GR YARIS Rally1) +7m29.6s
6 Oliver Solberg/Elliott Edmondson (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2) +8m32.9s
7 Sami Pajari/Marko Salminen (Toyota GR YARIS Rally1) +10m29.0s
8 Nikolay Gryazin/Konstantin Aleksandrov (Škoda Fabia RS Rally2) +10m58.7s
9 Roberto Daprà/Luca Guglielmetti (Škoda Fabia RS Rally2) +12m15.3s
10 Kajetan Kajetanowicz/Maciej Szczepaniak (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2) +12m21.1s ...
(Results as of 14:00 on Sunday, for the latest results please visit www.wrc.com)
2025 FIA World Rally Championship for drivers after round 6:
1 Elfyn Evans 133 points
2 Sébastien Ogier 114
3 Kalle Rovanperä 113
4 Ott Tänak 108
5 Thierry Neuville 83
6 Takamoto Katsuta 63
7 Adrien Fourmaux 44
8 Sami Pajari 31
9 Grégoire Munster 18
10 Josh McErlean 12 ...
2025 FIA World Rally Championship for manufacturers after round 6:
1 Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team 312 points
2 Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team 243
3 M-Sport Ford World Rally Team 87
4 Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT2 48
What's next?
The Acropolis Rally in Greece completes a trio of demanding gravel events in southern Europe with an earlier date this year of June 26-29. A legendary event in the WRC, it has a reputation for rocky mountain roads and high temperatures.
