Rally Japan: Final showdown for the WRC2 title

› WRC2 overall leader Oliver Solberg (Škoda Fabia RS Rally2) will not compete in the 2024 season finale, having already reached his personal limit of seven points-scoring events
› Solberg’s Toksport WRT teammates Gus Greensmith and Kajetan Kajetanowicz are among the drivers who could steal decisive points from the young Swede’s only title rival, Sami Pajari
› Greensmith and co-driver Jonas Andersson (Škoda Fabia RS Rally2) chase their second WRC2 victory of the season

Mladá Boleslav, 20 November 2024 – The FIA World Rally Championship season finale at Rally Japan (21-24 November 2024) will decide the WRC2 title race without overall leader Oliver Solberg competing. Having already completed his allocated number of WRC2 rounds, the 23-year-old Škoda driver will have to watch as his only remaining rival, Sami Pajari, chases victory or second place. A third place or lower for the Finn would hand Oliver Solberg his first WRC2 title.

With three victories, two second places, one fourth position and one retirement, Oliver Solberg and British co-driver Elliott Edmondson have racked up their personal maximum of seven points-scoring events. The Škoda crew will watch Rally Japan, the 13th and last event of the season, from the sidelines. “I’m a little bit sad about that. I love Japan and the passion that country has for our sport. I can only be happy with what we have achieved as a team this season. Thanks again to everyone for their support,” says Oliver Solberg.

Heading into the Japanese finale, the son of former FIA World Rally Champion Petter Solberg leads the WRC2 classification overall. Runner-up Yohan Rossel is also no longer eligible to score points. This leaves third-placed Sami Pajari as the only remaining threat to Solberg’s title hopes. The Finn is 15 points behind Solberg. A victory (25 points) or a second-place finish (18 points) would see him overtake Solberg. A third-place result (15 points) would put Pajari ex-aequo with Solberg – who then would be the new WRC2 champion due to achieving one more second place.

Among the handful of drivers who could derail Pajari’s ambitions, is Solberg’s Toksport WRT teammate Gus Greensmith. Together with Swedish navigator Jonas Andersson, the Škoda driver from England won the WRC2 classification at Safari Rally Kenya, the opening event of their 2024 campaign. A WRC2 victory at Rally Japan would round off their season perfectly. Polish Škoda pairing Kajetan Kajetanowicz/Maciej Szczepaniak of the Orlen Rally Team are also strong contenders for a podium finish. ‘Kajto’ is mainly chasing points for the WRC2 Challenger classification.

A total of six Škoda Fabia cars are listed for Rally Japan, including two local crews and Motorsport Ireland-backed duo Joshua McErlean/James Fulton, who are eligible only to score points for Toksport WRT’s second team.

The event, officially named FORUM8 Rally Japan, features 21 special stages totalling over 302 kilometres on winding and occasionally very narrow tarmac roads. It begins with a spectacular stadium show stage on Thursday, 21 November. Friday’s itinerary includes eight stages covering 126 kilometres, followed by seven stages on Saturday totalling 103 kilometres. The rally concludes on Sunday with five stages covering 70.57 kilometres. The podium ceremony is scheduled for 16:00 local time (09:00 CET).

Did you know, that…
...Rally Japan was held as a WRC round in the north of the country on gravel stages between 2004 and 2010?
...Rally Japan was scheduled to return to the FIA World Rally Championship in 2020, but had to be cancelled that and the following year due to the COVID-19 pandemic?
...the service park is located in Aichi/Gifu, not far from the metropolis of Nagoya and about 400 kilometres west of Tokyo?

Standings WRC2/Drivers (after 12 of 13 rallies)
1 Oliver Solberg (SWE), Škoda, 123 points (from 7 rallies)
2 Yohan Rossel (FRA), Citroën, 111 points (from 7 rallies)
3 Sami Pajari (FIN), Toyota, 108 Points (from 6 rallies)

2024 FIA World Rally Championship

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