Solberg wins Rally Chile as Toyota clinches manufacturers’ title
Sweden’s Oliver Solberg won Rally Chile, while Toyota secured the World Rally Championship manufacturers’ title ahead of schedule. It is Toyota’s sixth consecutive title and its 10th championship in history, drawing level with Lancia in total titles.
According to TimesLIVE, Solberg finished 16.6 seconds ahead of his teammate, nine-time world champion Sébastien Ogier. Adrien Fourmaux of Hyundai took third place, 33.3 seconds behind the winner.
Solberg’s victory
This was Solberg’s first success since winning Rally Monte Carlo at the start of the season. He scored 34 points over the weekend. The driver said the season had been uneven, but that the team had always supported and believed in him.
For Ogier, the podium in Chile was his 120th in the World Championship. He equalled his compatriot Sébastien Loeb in this statistic.
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Battle for the drivers’ title
Toyota needed to score only seven points to retain the manufacturers’ title. The team secured the championship with two rounds remaining in the season, holding 614 points to Hyundai’s 410.
Welshman Elfyn Evans was running second after the previous day of competition, but was forced to change a wheel on the penultimate special stage and lost more than two minutes. He finished fifth, and his lead in the drivers’ standings was reduced to 17 points.
Evans set the second-fastest time on the final Wolf Power Stage, losing only to Solberg, and has 230 points. Sami Pajari has 213, while Solberg has 209. Pajari finished Rally Chile in fourth place. The next round will take place in Sardinia, Italy, on October 1–4, while the season finale is scheduled for Saudi Arabia in November.
