WRC 2025 result after Round 6: Rally Italia Sardegna

Toyota Gazoo Racing continued its FIA World Rally Championship campaign with Sébastien Ogier (below) delivering Toyota’s sixth successive victory this year as well as Ogier’s own historic fifth win on the demanding Rally Italia Sardegna. How did this decisive WRC 2025 result play out? Read on as we review each day’s activities.

WRC 2025 result: Rally Italia Sardegna

While the gravel tracks of the Italian island of Sardinia appeared similar to those of the previous round in Portugal, the event provided an even more demanding challenge. Temperatures were higher, the stages were narrower and more technical, and the sandy top surface was soon swept away to expose a rocky and abrasive base. TGR entered a total of five GR Yaris Rally1 cars. Elfyn Evans, Kalle Rovanperä and Sébastien Ogier were nominated to compete for manufacturer points, with Takamoto Katsuta and Sami Pajari, the latter recently promoted from the WRC2 class, at the wheel of the final two cars.

Day 1

The day’s two loops of three stages took place in temperatures of around 30°C, and the all-new second test proved particularly tricky. Running third on the road, Ogier was able to claim an early lead in the morning’s first stage. But then he slipped back to fifth on the second test before finishing the morning third overall. During the afternoon, Ogier closed the gap before winning the day’s final test and claiming the lead by 2.1 seconds.

Meanwhile, the challenge of cleaning the road put both Rovanperä and Evans behind in the morning. The Finn found faster form in the afternooon, however, and concluded the day in fifth, and Evans reached the end of the day in sixth but hoped to benefit from an improved road position in day two.

Katsuta showed promising pace with a second-fastest time in the morning’s third stage, but a slow-speed roll on a tight corner in the afternoon left him seventh. But it was Pajari who produced perhaps the strongest opening day of his rookie season. Holding third overall until the morning’s final stage, he ended an otherwise consistent day in fourth place.

WRC 2025 result: Day 2

Day two was the longest of the rally and consisted of six stages on classic Sardinian roads. Having seized the lead yesterday, Ogier increased his narrow advantage by winning two of the morning’s stages. The time buffer was sufficient for the Frenchman to slightly slow his pace through the rougher and riskier conditions of the afternoon. But then he turned the wick back up again and won the tough final test by the blink of an eye to take an advantage of 11.1 seconds into the final day.

Continuing his strong pace from the day before, Rovanperä moved ahead of team-mate Pajari in the morning’s first stage and then picked up third place in the following test after a fellow competitor dropped out of the lead battle.

All five GR Yaris Rally1 cars concluded the day in the top seven. But while Ogier and Rovanperä avoided trouble, their team-mates were not so fortunate: all three lost time after being forced to stop and change a wheel during the afternoon.

Day 3

Ogier continued to increase his advantage through the morning after winning the opening stage, but it was always a close tussle with rival and friend Ott Tänak (Hyundai). There was still a scare in the deep ruts of the rally-ending Power Stage, when Ogier had a half-spin towards a tree and had to reverse back on to the course. Nevertheless, the manoeuver didn’t completely destroy his advantage and he hung on to seal the overall win by a scant 7.9 seconds.

As in the last round in Portugal, Rovanperä completed Toyota’s double podium by finishing third. The Finn had shown good pace throughout the event but saved his strongest performance for the Power Stage, where he was fastest by a significant 8.1 seconds, which also allowed him to accumulate the most bonus points in the Super Sunday classification.

A patient approach paid off for Evans, where he secured fourth overall – a pace similarly matched in the fourth- and fifth-place outcomes of the Super Sunday and Power Stage respectively. It was enough to retain his position at the head of the drivers’ championship and increase Toyota’s lead in the manufacturers’ championship to 69 points.

With his fifth win in Sardinia, Ogier is now the rally’s most successful driver since its introduction in 2004. And regarding this year’s championship, Rally Italia Sardegna represented Ogier’s third win from four starts and Toyota’s sixth successive win.

WRC 2025 result in Round 6: Rally Italia Sardegna

WRC 2025 championship standings: drivers and co-drivers

WRC 2025 championship standings: manufacturers

WRC 2025: Where next?

The seventh round of the WRC 2025 calendar is the legendary Acropolis Rally in Greece. The event takes place on 26-29 June and is the last of this year’s trio of demanding gravel events in southern Europe. It has a reputation for catching the unwary with its rocky mountain roads and high temperatures.

Learn more: How did last year’s WRC end for Toyota?