The Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team heads into the second half of the 2021 season at Rally Estonia (July 15-18) with the target of continuing the strong form that has seen it win each of the last three rallies – and five of the six rounds held so far this year.
After his win on the return of the legendary Safari Rally Kenya last month, Sébastien Ogier leads the drivers’ standings by 34 points over his team-mate and closest rival Elfyn Evans. Sixth in the standings, Kalle Rovanperä will aim to return to the podium in Estonia on roads that suit him well, while TGR WRC Challenge Program driver Takamoto Katsuta will hope to build upon his maiden WRC podium finish in Kenya.
Introduced to the WRC calendar in 2020, Rally Estonia is best known for its high-speed roads with crests and jumps, although more technical sections do also feature. The surface can be soft and sandy, meaning ruts can form for the second pass of each stage.
The event expands this year to cover 314.16 competitive kilometres and 24 stages across four days, starting on Thursday with an evening super special stage close to the service park in Tartu, Estonia’s second largest city. Friday and Saturday both feature a loop of four stages to be repeated after mid-day service, but while Friday’s stages are familiar from the 2020 event, Saturday’s are new – aside from a second pass of the Tartu super special to round out the day. A loop of three stages is run twice without a service break on Sunday, including a new Power Stage that runs adjacent to the service park.