Sébastien Ogier once again cemented his legacy as one of rallying’s all-time greats by claiming a record-breaking 10th victory at the 2025 Rally Monte-Carlo, the opening round of the FIA World Rally Championship. Behind the wheel of his Toyota GR Yaris Rally1, the Frenchman finished 18.5 seconds ahead of teammate Elfyn Evans, delivering a masterclass on the demanding alpine roads of the French Riviera.
This victory brings Ogier level with Sébastien Loeb in Monte-Carlo victories under the WRC banner, with both drivers boasting nine wins each. However, Ogier’s tally rises to 10 when including his 2009 triumph during the Intercontinental Rally Challenge (IRC).
Sunday’s concluding leg promised high stakes and lived up to the expectations. Ogier and Evans opted for a calculated tire strategy, equipping their cars with four studded Hankook tires and two super-soft slicks. This decision gave them an edge on the icy stretches of Avançon – Notre-Dame du Laus but left them vulnerable on drier sections like the penultimate stage, Digne-les-Bains / Chaudon-Norante.
Adrien Fourmaux, in his debut outing with Hyundai, seized the opportunity with a full-slick setup. His performance on the drier roads was remarkable, outpacing the Toyotas by 23.9 and 17.8 seconds, respectively, and momentarily threatening to shake up the podium standings. However, the iconic Col de Turini, coated in ice, neutralised the conditions. With all contenders reverting to mixed tire setups, Ogier dominated the stage, extending his lead further. Evans narrowly held off Fourmaux’s late charge, finishing just 7.5 seconds ahead of the Frenchman despite a tense moment with a rock face.
Sunday’s challenging roads proved costly for several competitors. Toyota drivers Sami Pajari and Takamoto Katsuta both slid off the course in SS17, while Grégoire Munster’s M-Sport Ford Puma Rally1 met the same fate in the subsequent stage.
Further down the standings, Hyundai’s Ott Tänak lost fourth place to Toyota’s Kalle Rovanperä after a misstep in tire strategy. Rovanperä finished 4.7 seconds ahead of Tänak. Meanwhile, defending champion Thierry Neuville endured a challenging rally, salvaging sixth place after a string of setbacks, including suspension damage, a flat tire, and an electrical issue that collectively cost him more than five minutes. A standout performance came from M-Sport Ford’s Josh McErlean, who impressed in his Rally1 debut with a strong seventh-place finish.
As the WRC heads to its only pure winter rally in Sweden, the competition will intensify on the snow-covered roads of Umeå from 13 to 16 February.
Monte-Carlo points
