The 53rd edition of the The World Rally Championship (WRC) begins this Thursday at the 93rd of Monte Carlothe first event of a tournament expanded to 14 races, where Belgian Thierry Neuville defended the title (Hyundai), already It has three official teams (Hyundai, M-Sport Ford and Toyota) with cars without a plug-in hybrid power unit and that’s for the second year in a row with a revised scoring system.
After five runner-ups and three third places, Thierry Neuville won his first world title in 2024 after a season in which he achieved two victories (Monte Carlo and Acropolis) and he was the most consistent adding 242 points, 32 more than the second, the British Elfyn Evans.
In 2025 Neuville continues to lead the Hyundai teamwhere he extended his contract for another year, and the Estonian Ott Tänak, champion in 2019, continues to drive the i20 N Rally1 However, the Spaniard Dani Sordo and the French Adrien has joined from M-Sport (Ford). Fourmaux.
Toyota has Finnish Kalle Rovanperä full-time again this yearworld champion in 2022 and 2023 and in 2024 competed in just seven events. In addition, Elfyn Evans and the Japanese Takamoto Katsuta followed.
The newly crowned WRC2 champion, the Finn Sami Pajari will drive the fourth Toyota GR Yariswhile the eight-time French champion Sébastien Ogier will continue racing for a partial season with the Japanese team.
M-Sport retains Luxembourger Grégoire Munster as the first Ford Puma driver. He will be joined full-time by Irishman Josh McErlean, while Latvia’s Mārtiņš Sesks will compete in select events from Rally Sweden.
A new scoring system, no hybrid cars and 14 races. Regarding WRC 2025 regulatory developments, the points distribution system stands out, which has been reviewed for the second consecutive season.
This year the Saturday points awarded in 2024 have been removed. Points are awarded based on the overall ranking of the top ten at the end of the rally at the rate of 25-17-15-12-10-8-6-4-2-1with additional points awarded to the top five on Sunday and the five fastest on the Power Stage.
After accumulating a maximum of 30 points in 2024, a driver who wins a rally in 2025, tops the ‘Super Sunday’ order and is fastest at the close of the ‘Power Stage’ can now achieve a maximum of 35 .
In 2025 there is a new tire supplier: the South Korean manufacturer Hankookwhich replaces the Italian Pirelli, which has done so since 2021.
Besides, Cars in the top category (Rally1) will be lighter, simpler and more affordable by 2025. They will use 100% sustainable fuel as they have done since 2022but without the plug-in hybrid power units deployed in the last three years, the FIA reports.
WRC 2025 will have 14 tests, one more than last yearand will visit the island of Gran Canaria, Paraguay and Saudi Arabia for the first time.
Greece’s Acropolis Rally returns at the end of Junea date he last occupied in 2005, while the sa Estonia is back after being part of the European Championship last season.
The inclusion of Rally Paraguay means there are two rallies in South America for the first time since 2019. In addition, the new Saudi Arabia Rally became the decisive round with Japan now the penultimate event of the year.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Rose Herman and I work as an author for Today Times Live. My expertise lies in writing about sports, a passion of mine that has been with me since childhood. As part of my job, I provide comprehensive coverage on everything from football to tennis to golf.
