Nocturnal 
Elfyn Evans has been crowned World Rally Champion after a dramatic final stage in Sardinia saw Toyota teammate Oliver Solberg lose control of his Yaris with just two corners of the season left to run.
It meant Evans became the first British driver to win the WRC title since Richard Burns 25 years ago, as first reported by Crash.Net. The result capped a title fight that, according to Highland Radio, came down to a straight shootout between Evans and Solberg on the season-ending Wolf Power Stage, with just a single point separating them going into it.
It was the first time in the championship’s history that the title had been decided on the very last stage of the final rally, underlining just how tight the finish was.
How Saturday set up the shootout
Solberg had arrived in Sardinia as the outsider but tore into the rally on Saturday, as detailed by the FIA and WRC’s own reports. He started the day third, 12.3 seconds off overnight leader Thierry Neuville, before winning stages nine and ten to flip the gap and reach the midday service 2.7 seconds clear.
The picture changed again almost immediately when Neuville crashed just over a kilometre into the next stage, damaging the rear of his Hyundai i20 N Rally1 and retiring for the day. That promoted nine-time champion Sébastien Ogier into second, but Solberg still held a buffer of more than half a minute.
With the roads growing rougher through the afternoon, Solberg eased off the throttle slightly. “This afternoon I was a bit more careful, but I enjoyed it in there,” he said after the day’s final test. “So far, we are doing a great job. We will do our job and see what happens.”
Ogier closed to within 33.6 seconds by winning the last two stages of the day but remained cautious about his chances heading into Sunday. “There are still some long stages to go tomorrow with rough sections, so nothing is done,” he said. “Beating Oliver will be difficult, but we will see.”
Championship leader Evans had a scrappier Saturday, ending it down in fifth after late pressure from Hyundai’s Adrien Fourmaux, who recovered from two punctures to win the final stage of the day. Provisional standings had Evans on 240 points, six clear of Solberg on 234, with Sami Pajari a further six back on 228 and still mathematically, if barely, in the hunt.
What happens next
Sunday’s Super Sunday points and the Power Stage reshuffled that gap further, with Autosport reporting Evans also suffered a puncture ahead of the decisive final test, adding yet another twist to an already chaotic finish. By the time the two Toyota drivers lined up for the last stage, Highland Radio reports they were separated by just a single point, turning the Power Stage into a straight title decider. Solberg looked set to claim both the rally win and his maiden world title until he lost control two corners from home, handing the championship to Evans.
Elsewhere in the final standings, Takamoto Katsuta finished sixth, while the Fermanagh/Donegal crew of Jon Armstrong and Shane Byrne took their best result of the season in seventh, finishing 12th overall in the championship. Derry’s Joshua McErlean also ended the season 12th after clipping a tree the previous day.
Full final classification and points totals from the FIA are expected to be confirmed shortly, but the headline is already clear: Evans ends a quarter-century wait for a British world champion, while Solberg’s maiden title bid ends agonisingly short.
