2026 WRC Safari Rally, Mud, Dust, and Drama: Solberg leads out another commanding performance by Toyota

 

Naivasha, Kenya,  can’t just turn up to the Safari and expect it to behave. You don’t "race" Kenya; you negotiate with it, and on Thursday’s opening leg of the 2026 WRC Safari Rally, the Great Rift Valley was in no mood for compromise.

By the time the mud and dust settled around Lake Naivasha tonight, it was Oliver Solberg who emerged from the haze with a commanding lead. Now driving a Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 as a full-time factory man, the young Swede looked every bit the natural successor to the legends who have tamed this wilderness before him. But as any veteran of the Safari—from the era of Mehta to the modern day—will tell you, Thursday is merely the prologue to the pain.

The Top Five: A Toyota Takeover

Toyota Gazoo Racing has historically owned these plains, and Day One of 2026 suggests the script hasn't changed. They currently occupy the entire top five in a display of sheer mechanical dominance.

Pos	Driver	Car	Gap to Leader
1	Oliver Solberg	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	—
2	Elfyn Evans	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	+33.3s
3	Sébastien Ogier	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	+1m05.1s
4	Takamoto Katsuta	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	+1m15.3s
5	Sami Pajari	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	+2m06.4s

Solberg was masterful, finding grip where others found only "fesh-fesh". Behind him, championship leader Elfyn Evans played the long game, mindful that his 13-point lead in the standings could evaporate in a single mud-hole. Ogier, returning for his partial program, remains the ultimate predator in the weeds, lurking just over a minute back.

Drama and Heartbreak

It wouldn't be the Safari without a casualty list that reads like a tragedy. The most significant retirement of the day belonged to Lancia’s Yohan Rossel. In a moment of pure Safari cruelty, Rossel clipped a hidden rock on a narrow section, ending his day prematurely and leaving teammate Nikolay Gryazin to fly the flag in WRC2.

Over at Hyundai, the mood is as dark as a Kenyan storm cloud. Thierry Neuville—so often the bridesmaid in Africa—admitted to having "zero confidence" after dropping nearly 45 seconds on the opening test. He’s currently mired in ninth, struggling with a car that seems to be fighting the terrain rather than flowing with it.

The Speculation: A Muddy Weekend Ahead?

The local word in Naivasha is that the rains are coming. If the dust turns to the infamous "black cotton" mud tomorrow, Solberg’s 33-second lead over Evans will mean nothing. We’ve seen Evans win here by being the last man standing, and with the Sleeping Warrior stage looming on Friday, the real Safari starts tomorrow.

Can Toyota maintain this 1-2-3-4-5? History says yes, but the African sky might have other plans.

Report: Neil McDaid

Photos: Toyota Gazoo, Jon Armstrong FB

Solberg leads Toyota's Snow-Bound Sweep on day one of 2026 WRC Sweden

 

UMEÅ, Sweden – If anyone wondered whether Oliver Solberg could carry the weight of a nation – and a championship lead – onto the ice of Västerbotten, the answer roared through the Red Barn Arena on Thursday night.

Under the floodlights of the Umeå Sprint, amidst the biting cold and the scent of pyrotechnics, Solberg didn’t just start his home rally; he stamped his authority on it. 

Fresh from a fairytale victory in Monte Carlo, the 24-year-old wrestling his Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 through the technical 5.16km opener to stop the clocks at 5m53.1s. It wasn't clean – the rear of the Yaris dancing a frantic jig on the polished ice – but it was fast. Fast enough to head a staggering Toyota 1-2-3-4 lockout that has left Hyundai scrambling for answers before the forests have even properly opened.

“The car was going in all directions. There was nothing to follow,” Solberg admitted at the stop line, his breath visible in the cabin. “It was really tricky and required a lot of grip… not easy, but good enough.”

It was more than good enough. It was a statement.

Elfyn Evans, ever the pragmatist, slotted into second, 3.8 seconds adrift. The Welshman, currently chasing his young teammate in the standings, opted for a "cautious" approach on the rutted surface, wary of the biting snowbanks that claimed M-Sport’s Jon Armstrong. Armstrong, making his Rally1 debut on snow, found the white stuff early, burying the nose of his Puma and hemorrhaging 45 seconds – a cruel welcome to the top flight.

Takamoto Katsuta and Sami Pajari rounded out the Toyota quartet, leaving Thierry Neuville as the lead Hyundai in fifth, 6.7 seconds back. The reigning world champion looked ill-at-ease, braking early and fighting a lack of feeling that has plagued the i20 N on these openers before. 

“I’m braking super, super early all the time,” Neuville grimaced. “I just don’t know if the car will stop.”

For the returning Esapekka Lappi, seventh was a quiet start to a mission of rehabilitation, but tonight belonged to Solberg. The Prince of Värmland has come home, and he’s in no mood to share the throne.

Rally Sweden Leaderboard (After SS1)

Pos	Driver	Car	Time	Gap
1	Oliver Solberg	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	5:53.1	–
2	Elfyn Evans	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	5:56.9	+3.8s
3	Takamoto Katsuta	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	5:57.5	+4.4s
4	Sami Pajari	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1	5:58.7	+5.6s
5	Thierry Neuville	Hyundai i20 N Rally1	5:59.8	+6.7s

From Pace Notes to Power Moves: Jonne Halttunen Joins Toyota Gazoo Racing USA Rally Program

 

Report: Neil McDaid

Photo: Red Bull Racing 

Toyota has confirmed WRC Champion Co-driver Jonne Halttunen as Project Manager for its expansion into the American Rally Association Championship. Toyota Gazoo Racing will also collaborate with Rallysupport Services, a company ironically led by Lance Smith, the same Lance Smith of Vermont Sports Car who brought Subaru to be the most successful brand in North American Rally.

Halttunen arrives with a résumé that commands instant respect. As co-driver to Kalle Rovanperä, he has been a central figure in Toyota Gazoo Racing’s modern WRC dominance. Together they claimed WRC World Championships in 2022 and 2023, multiple rally victories across gravel, tarmac, and snow, and redefined the modern driver–co-driver partnership with precision, calm authority, and tactical intelligence beyond their years. Halttunen’s reputation inside the service park is that of a strategist as much as a navigator—someone who understands not just pace notes, but the bigger competitive picture.

Less widely discussed, but equally relevant for the ARA project, is Halttunen’s own rally driving background. Before cementing his career on the right-hand seat, he competed as a driver in Finland’s national rally scene, giving him first-hand understanding of car behavior, setup compromises, and the physical demands of stage competition—an invaluable asset when translating WRC-level thinking to American events with their unique roads, formats, and logistics.

With WRC, getting serious about getting USA on their calendar, the obvious question is: could this project lead to something even bigger for Jonne? While a one-off ARA appearance by Halttunen alongside Rovanperä might seem far-fetched, Rovanperä has said "rallying will always be close to his heart," even though he hasn't indicated a 2026 stage rally commitment. Given this season's focus on establishing Toyota's presence in the USA, such an entry would generate significant exposure for both Toyota and ARA. Of course, this is all speculation, but regardless, Halttunen's move alone demonstrates that American stage rally is no longer on the fringes; it's firmly back on the world map.