Wed 03 Jan 2024

Evans gears up for Monte-Carlo tests

Toyota Gazoo Racing's lead driver Elfyn Evans will begin his Rallye Monte-Carlo preparations at next week’s pre-event test.

The Welshman, who finished as the runner-up in last year's FIA World Rally Championship, skipped the opportunity for seat time in the Yaris in Finland last month while he recovered from injuries sustained in a bike accident.


Speaking after the festive break, Toyota's team principal Jari-Matti Latvala confirmed that Evans is very much on track for the season ahead.


“We haven’t made any changes to the [test] schedule,” said the Finn. “The plan is the same, Elfyn will test with the rest of the drivers. He did miss some driving in Finland last month, but this was more of an opportunity for the drivers to get some early Sweden running in when we had good conditions in Finland.


“I don’t think he missed so much, Taka [Katsuta] was able to use his day, so we still got some time with the car. Now Elfyn can come back to the pre-event test and make sure he is ready for the start of the season.”


After starting his time at Toyota with a pair of strong podium finishes in the principality, Evans went off the road while running second in 2022 and suffered a puncture while in the victory fight with team-mate Sébastien Ogier 12 months ago.

Finland
Starts: Wednesday, July 31, 2024 at 4:00:00 PM
Italy
Starts: Friday, July 26, 2024 at 8:30:00 AM
Hungary
Starts: Saturday, July 27, 2024 at 9:30:00 AM