Thursday’s shakedown has been completed for Rally Chile, round 12 of the 2026 WRC. Takamoto Katsuta and stand-in co-driver James Fulton set a 4:16.2 on their second pass of the shakedown road, 2.4 seconds faster than Hyundai’s Adrien Fourmaux. Stages counting towards the overall rally classification will begin on Friday.
Katsuta and Fulton adapt to a new partnership
Toyota confirmed that regular co-driver Aaron Johnston had been diagnosed with a broken collarbone following the accident in Paraguay and needed more recovery time, so Fulton would compete in Chile. Katsuta told WRC’s official interview that the pair had only a few days to practise and were working to find a shared rhythm and approach to concentration, with Johnston also providing help remotely.
Lappi recovers time after an error on his first run
Pajari and Lappi both recorded best times of 4:18.7. On his first run, Lappi half-spun when the rear stepped out and made contact with a tree, losing more than 30 seconds, before improving his time with further shakedown runs. Neuville and Ogier were fifth and sixth respectively, their best times separated by 0.1 seconds.
Armstrong, McErlean and Solberg followed in that order, with Evans tenth, 10.2 seconds behind Katsuta. Evans said there was a large amount of loose dirt on the first pass and hoped the forecast overnight rain would ease the road-sweeping burden when he opened the road on Friday. Ogier also felt that the dry shakedown conditions differed from the potentially wet conditions on the opening day of competition.
Competition begins Friday, with Saturday the longest day
The event comprises 16 timed stages totalling 311.18 kilometres, with around forty per cent of the route made up of stages newly added for this edition. Friday begins with the 22.94-kilometre Turquía stage, with three stages each run twice. Saturday is the longest day at 139.2 kilometres. On Sunday, the new Carampangue stage and the returning Biobío stage will each be run twice, with the final Biobío pass serving as the Power Stage.
Evans enters the round with a 20-point lead over Pajari, who has won the previous three rounds in succession. Toyota comes into the event with a 173-point lead in the manufacturers’ standings, with a combined 180 points available across the remaining three rounds. According to the team’s pre-event calculation, scoring at least 7 points in Chile would secure the manufacturers’ title early.
Shakedown results
| Order | Car No. | Driver | Co-driver | Class | Car | Best time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 18 | Takamoto Katsuta | James FULTON | Rally1 | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 | 4:16.2 |
| 2 | 16 | Adrien Fourmaux | Alexandre CORIA | Rally1 | Hyundai i20 N Rally1 | 4:18.6 |
| 3 | 5 | Sami Pajari | Marko SALMINEN | Rally1 | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 | 4:18.7 |
| 4 | 4 | Esapekka Lappi | Enni MÄLKÖNEN | Rally1 | Hyundai i20 N Rally1 | 4:18.7 |
| 5 | 11 | Thierry Neuville | Martijn WYDAEGHE | Rally1 | Hyundai i20 N Rally1 | 4:19.0 |
| 6 | 1 | Sébastien Ogier | Vincent LANDAIS | Rally1 | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 | 4:19.1 |
| 7 | 95 | Jon Armstrong | Shane BYRNE | Rally1 | Ford Puma Rally1 | 4:19.6 |
| 8 | 55 | Josh McErlean | Eoin TREACY | Rally1 | Ford Puma Rally1 | 4:20.5 |
| 9 | 99 | Oliver Solberg | Elliott EDMONDSON | Rally1 | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 | 4:23.2 |
| 10 | 33 | Elfyn Evans | Scott MARTIN | Rally1 | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 | 4:26.4 |
| 11 | 26 | Gus GREENSMITH | Jonas ANDERSSON | Rally2 | Toyota GR Yaris | 4:28.4 |
| 12 | 28 | Taylor GILL | Daniel BRKIC | Rally2 | Skoda Fabia RS | 4:31.2 |
| 13 | 29 | Romet JÜRGENSON | Siim OJA | Rally2 | Ford Fiesta Mk II | 4:31.2 |
| 14 | 32 | Alberto HELLER | Luis ALLENDE | Rally2 | Toyota GR Yaris | 4:32.1 |
| 15 | 22 | Nikolay GRYAZIN | Konstantin ALEKSANDROV | Rally2 | Lancia Ypsilon HF | 4:32.2 |
| 16 | 23 | Yohan ROSSEL | Arnaud DUNAND | Rally2 | Lancia Ypsilon HF | 4:32.2 |
| 17 | 20 | Robert VIRVES | Jakko VIILO | Rally2 | Skoda Fabia RS | 4:32.8 |
| 18 | 27 | Yuki YAMAMOTO | Topi LUHTINEN | Rally2 | Toyota GR Yaris | 4:32.9 |
| 19 | 21 | Alejandro CACHÓN | Borja ROZADA | Rally2 | Toyota GR Yaris | 4:33.3 |
| 20 | 31 | Jorge MARTÍNEZ | Rubén GARCÍA | Rally2 | Skoda Fabia RS | 4:35.5 |
| 21 | 34 | Pedro HELLER | Pablo OLMOS | Rally2 | Toyota GR Yaris | 4:37.8 |
| 22 | 24 | Fau ZALDIVAR | Marcelo DER OHANNESIAN | Rally2 | Skoda Fabia RS | 4:38.2 |
| 23 | 25 | Diego DOMÍNGUEZ | Rogelio PEÑATE | Rally2 | Toyota GR Yaris | 4:38.8 |
| 24 | 56 | Kerem KAZAZ | Corentin SILVESTRE | Rally3 | Ford Fiesta Rally3 | 4:39.2 |
| 25 | 54 | Leevi LASSILA | Mikko LUKKA | Rally3 | Ford Fiesta Rally3 | 4:39.3 |
| 26 | 37 | Adrien MOSCA | Julie AMBLARD | Rally2 | Toyota GR Yaris | 4:39.4 |
| 27 | 51 | Calle CARLBERG | Jørgen ERIKSEN | Rally3 | Ford Fiesta Rally3 | 4:40.7 |
| 28 | 52 | Ali TÜRKKAN | Bilge AYAN | Rally3 | Ford Fiesta Rally3 | 4:40.8 |
| 29 | 58 | Gerardo ROSSELOT | Marcelo BRIZIO | Rally3 | Ford Fiesta Rally3 | 4:41.1 |
| 30 | 36 | Tadeo ROSSELOT | Matías AMÉSTICA | Rally2 | Citroen C3 | 4:42.7 |
| 31 | 57 | Craig RAHILL | Conor SMITH | Rally3 | Ford Fiesta Rally3 | 4:42.9 |
| 32 | 35 | Emilio ROSSELOT | Matías LEIVA | Rally2 | Citroen C3 | 4:43.5 |
| 33 | 50 | Felipe PADILLA | Sebastián OLGUÍN | Rally3 | Ford Fiesta Rally3 | 4:47.1 |
| 34 | 46 | Ignacio GARDIOL | Gonzalo DÍAZ | Rally3 | Ford Fiesta Rally3 | 4:47.2 |
| 35 | 59 | Alex HEILBRUNN | Juan CILLONIZ | Rally3 | Ford Fiesta Rally3 | 4:47.3 |
| 36 | 49 | Patricio MUÑOZ | Miguel RECALT | Rally3 | Ford Fiesta Rally3 | 4:47.4 |
| 37 | 38 | Miguel GRANADOS | Marc MARTÍ | Rally2 | Skoda Fabia RS | 4:48.1 |
| 38 | 45 | Eduardo CASTRO | Javiera ROMÁN | Rally3 | Ford Fiesta Rally3 | 4:53.9 |
| 39 | 40 | André MARTÍNEZ | Matias ARANGUREN | Rally3 | Ford Fiesta Rally3 | 4:55.5 |
| 40 | 48 | Eduardo KOVACS | Juan Pablo CARRERA | Rally3 | Ford Fiesta Rally3 | 4:59.4 |
| 41 | 44 | Dean MASCARENHAS | Gagan KARUMBAIAH | Rally3 | Ford Fiesta Rally3 | 5:00.6 |
| 42 | 61 | Jorge MARTÍNEZ | Juan Pablo MONASTEROLO | Rally3 | Ford Fiesta Rally3 | 5:05.6 |
| 43 | 43 | Naveen PULLIGILLA | Musa SHERIF | Rally3 | Ford Fiesta Rally3 | 5:08.3 |
| 44 | 39 | Eric ROYÈRE | Maxime ANDERNACK | Rally3 | Ford Fiesta Rally3 | 5:13.8 |
| 45 | 47 | Carlos PRIETO | Juan VARELA | Rally3 | Ford Fiesta Rally3 | 5:16.0 |
| 46 | 64 | Mario PARRA | Hugo GAJARDO | Rally4 | Opel Corsa | 5:16.5 |
| 47 | 42 | Georgios VASILAKIS | Allan HARRYMAN | Rally3 | Ford Fiesta Rally3 | 5:16.8 |
| 48 | 63 | Marcos PERSIA | Nicolas ALARCÓN | Rally4 | Peugeot 208 Rally4 | 5:19.0 |
| 49 | 65 | Marcelo PÉREZ | Enrique PÉREZ | Rally4 | Peugeot 208 Rally4 | 5:22.4 |
| 50 | 53 | Gil MEMBRADO | Adrián PÉREZ | Rally3 | Ford Fiesta Rally3 | 5:28.5 |
| 51 | 67 | Francisco ASENCIO | Alan BASCUR | Rally4 | Peugeot 208 Rally4 | 5:31.4 |
