Elfyn Evans stands on the verge of a maiden FIA World Rally Championship crown as the series heads to Asia for this week's FORUM8 Rally Japan (6 - 9 November) - Toyota Gazoo Racing's home event and the penultimate round of the 2025 season.
Fresh from Toyota clinching the manufacturers' title at Central European Rally, all eyes now turn to the intra-team battle for drivers' honours. Evans leads team-mates Sébastien Ogier and Kalle Rovanperä by 13 points apiece and can, in theory, wrap up the championship this weekend if he outscores both by 23 points.
It's a tall order, but Japan's twisting asphalt stages have a reputation for punishing even the smallest lapse in concentration - and that unpredictability keeps Evans firmly in contention. The Welshman is chasing both a personal milestone and another home triumph for Toyota, which has dominated the season with four cars consistently inside the top five.
"Rally Japan is always a big week as the home event for TGR and there's a very special atmosphere," said Evans. "It's not an easy rally with very demanding and twisty stages, and in the last few years we've seen some quite difficult conditions at times. Even when it's dry, there's very little margin for error and it's easy to make a small but costly mistake."
Ogier and Rovanperä, who has triumphed on the past two asphalt rounds, will both be eager to extend the fight to the season finale in Saudi Arabia later this month.
Local hero Takamoto Katsuta is another to watch. A podium finisher on home soil in 2022, the Toyota driver knows the character of Aichi and Gifu's mountain roads better than most and will be desperate to deliver in front of passionate Japanese fans.
Hyundai Motorsport, meanwhile, is intent on ending the campaign strongly. Ott Tänak remains fourth overall and still mathematically in the fight for the drivers' title, while outgoing champion Thierry Neuville will be chasing redemption after a challenging run of form since Chile. Frenchman Adrien Fourmaux drives the team's third i20 N Rally1 car while Grégoire Munster and Josh McErlean line up in Puma Rally1s for M-Sport Ford.
FORUM8 Rally Japan features 20 asphalt stages covering more than 300km. Action begins on Thursday afternoon with the Kuragaike Park super special, before Friday's opening loop of classic Japanese Tarmac tests sets the tone for what could be a decisive weekend in the 2025 title race.
The World Rally Championship (WRC) is the FIA's premium rally series. It showcases high-performance cars and the world's best drivers competing in dramatic surroundings, ranging from Sweden's freezing winter to Kenya's heat and rocky tracks. Participants battle for drivers' and manufacturers' titles at 14 rallies. More information can be found at www.wrc.com.
