Oliver Solberg Makes History as Youngest Rallye Monte-Carlo Winner in WRC Era

Monte-Carlo, Monaco: Oliver Solberg delivered a landmark performance at Rallye Monte-Carlo, holding his nerve through a dramatic final leg to become the youngest-ever winner of the iconic event in the FIA World Rally Championship era.

Co-driven by Britain’s Elliott Edmondson, the 24-year-old Toyota Gazoo Racing driver converted his overnight lead into a maiden WRC victory, rewriting the history books by surpassing the long-standing benchmark set by Björn Waldegård in 1970. The triumph also sealed a perfect start to the 2026 WRC season for Toyota, which locked out all three podium positions on the opening round.

Starting Sunday with a cushion of more than a minute, Solberg’s charge appeared under threat on the icy hairpins of La Bollène-Vésubie. A brief overshoot saw his GR Yaris Rally1 momentarily facing the wrong direction, but the Swede recovered swiftly, losing only seconds before regaining control on the decisive Col de Turini Wolf Power Stage.

“I don’t understand it at the moment,” said an emotional Solberg at the finish. “This was the most difficult rally I’ve done in my life. It’s my first rally on tarmac in this car and to win here is unbelievable. Toyota trusted me, believed in me, and the teamwork has been exceptional.”

Behind him, Elfyn Evans secured second place, finishing 51.8 seconds adrift after a clean and composed final day. The Welshman also emerged as the top scorer on Super Sunday among Rally1 drivers. Nine-time world champion Sébastien Ogier completed Toyota’s podium lockout in third, 2m 02.2s behind the winner, admitting he had no answer to his team-mates’ pace in the constantly evolving conditions.

Hyundai’s Adrien Fourmaux was the only driver to disrupt Toyota’s dominance, steering his i20 N Rally1 to fourth overall after claiming two stage wins. Team-mate Thierry Neuville endured a frustrating Sunday, with a puncture caused by clipping a rock ending his hopes of bonus points and leaving him fifth.

Sunday proved particularly cruel for M-Sport Ford. Rally1 debutant Jon Armstrong, running an impressive sixth, slid off just 700 metres into SS16 and retired. Josh McErlean also crashed out on the same stage, while Grégoire Munster failed to start the day due to a mechanical issue.

Armstrong’s retirement reshuffled the order, promoting Léo Rossel to sixth overall and WRC2 victory. Takamoto Katsuta climbed to seventh after overcoming power-steering problems earlier in the rally. Roberto Daprà and Arthur Pelamourgues completed the WRC2 podium, while Eric Camilli rounded out the top ten.

The FIA World Rally Championship continues next month at Rally Sweden (12–15 February), the season’s only pure winter event, where crews will tackle the frozen forests around Umeå for round two of the 14-round campaign.

Rallye Monte-Carlo 2026 – Final Classification (Top 6)

Oliver Solberg / Elliott Edmondson (SWE) – Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 – 4h 24m 59.0s
Elfyn Evans / Scott Martin (GBR) – Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +51.8s
Sébastien Ogier / Vincent Landais (FRA) – Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 +2m 02.2s
Adrien Fourmaux / Alexandre Coria (FRA) – Hyundai i20 N Rally1 +5m 59.3s
Thierry Neuville / Martijn Wydaeghe (BEL) – Hyundai i20 N Rally1 +10m 29.8s
Léo Rossel / Guillaume Mercoiret (FRA) – Citroën C3 Rally2 +12m 58.4s

WRC Drivers’ Standings (After Round 1 of 14)