WRC
Preview: ueno Rally del Paraguay
Toyota Gazoo Racing has the chance to equal one of the FIA World Rally Championship’s longest-standing records when ueno Rally del Paraguay hosts round 11 of the season this week.
The Japanese manufacturer starts the gravel fixture with the opportunity to secure a sixth consecutive manufacturers’ crown and its 10th in total, which would draw it level with Lancia’s long-standing all-time record.
Toyota has built a commanding 174-point advantage over Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team after 10 rounds and only needs to outscore its rival by six points in Paraguay to put the championship beyond reach.
It arrives with formidable strength in depth. All five GR Yaris Rally1 drivers occupy the top five positions in the drivers’ standings, while Toyota has won nine of the opening 10 rallies of 2026.
“We will have our first opportunity to secure the manufacturers’ title, but we are not expecting that to be easy,” said deputy team principal Juha Kankkunen.
That caution is understandable after Paraguay’s spectacular WRC debut last season demonstrated just how quickly fortunes can change on its distinctive red-earth roads.
Sébastien Ogier won the inaugural edition after recovering from an early tyre deflation, but heavy rain transformed conditions during Sunday’s finale and caused dramatic swings further down the order.
The reigning world champion returns after his Secto Rally Finland challenge ended in a heavy accident while leading. Ogier, who has committed to contesting the remaining four rounds, sits fifth in the drivers’ standings, 62 points behind championship leader Elfyn Evans.
Evans holds a 30-point advantage over Sami Pajari, whose breakthrough victory in Estonia was followed by a second consecutive triumph on home ground in Finland.
Takamoto Katsuta is another 11 points back in third, with Oliver Solberg five points further behind after consecutive runner-up finishes. Solberg is no stranger to Paraguay either, having won WRC2 there on his first visit last year.
Hyundai, meanwhile, heads to Encarnación determined to prevent Toyota from wrapping up the manufacturers’ contest.
Thierry Neuville and Adrien Fourmaux both showed strong pace on Paraguay’s debut, with Neuville claiming third and taking maximum Super Sunday and Wolf Power Stage points. Fourmaux was in podium contention until worsening rain on the final test.
They are joined this week by Hayden Paddon, who makes his first top-level WRC start on gravel since Rally Australia in 2018. Seven of the New Zealander’s nine WRC podiums have come on gravel, including his sole victory in Argentina a decade ago.
M-Sport Ford fields Josh McErlean and Jon Armstrong. McErlean arrives after finishing seventh and as the leading Puma Rally1 in Finland, while Paraguay represents completely new territory for Armstrong.
Now in its second WRC season, Paraguay presents an even greater challenge than 12 months ago.
At 358.88km across 22 stages, it is the longest rally of the 2026 campaign and around 30km longer than last year. More than one third of the competitive route is new, with only two tests remaining completely unchanged.
Fast, junction-heavy roads and significant jumps are mixed with narrower, technical forest sections, while the soft red-clay surface can provide high grip when dry before becoming exceptionally slippery if rain arrives.
Friday is the longest leg at 153.38km and includes two passes over the rally’s longest test, the 33.88km Yerbatera. Saturday introduces further new roads before ending with a new mixed-surface super special on the Encarnación Costanera.
Five stages remain on Sunday, culminating in the 10.26km Encarnación Wolf Power Stage.
