Sebastien Ogier is closing in on a historic 10th Monte Carlo Rally victory, leading the 2025 FIA World Rally Championship season opener by 20.3 seconds heading into Sunday's final leg.

The eight-time WRC champion, competing part-time in 2025, masterfully navigated Saturday's six challenging stages near Gap despite facing muddy and loose conditions from his 10th-place starting position. Alongside co-driver Vincent Landais, Ogier extended his lead from Friday's 12.6-second advantage through measured, calculated driving.

A thrilling battle for second place continues between Toyota's Elfyn Evans and Hyundai's Adrien Fourmaux, separated by just 4.3 seconds. Fourmaux, making an impressive Hyundai debut, briefly held second before Evans reclaimed the position in the afternoon.

Ott Tanak showed remarkable pace in his Hyundai after mid-day setup changes, setting the fastest time on the 12.96-mile Aucelon/Recoubeau-Jansac 2 stage. He now sits just 2.5 seconds behind Fourmaux in fourth place.

Current standings after Saturday (Top 5):

1. Sebastien Ogier/Vincent Landais (Toyota) - 2h42m48.2s
2. Elfyn Evans/Scott Martin (Toyota) +20.3s
3. Adrien Fourmaux/Alexandre Coria (Hyundai) +24.6s
4. Ott Tanak/Martin Jarveoja (Hyundai) +27.1s
5. Kalle Rovanpera/Jonne Halttunen (Toyota) +55.0s

In WRC2, Yohan Rossel leads convincingly in his Citroen C3, building a three-minute advantage while maintaining a perfect record of stage wins among point-scoring drivers.

Sunday's final leg features three stages totaling 31.63 miles, concluding with the Wolf Power Stage before the ceremonial finish in Monaco.

Related Articles

Previous Articles