TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Clinches Victory at Rally Estonia

The TOYOTA GAZOO Racing (TGR) World Rally Team (WRT) recently secured yet another impressive victory this season for its GR YARIS Rally1 Hybrid Electric vehicle in the 2023 FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) at Rally Estonia. Kalle Rovanperä once again dominated the roads in the No. 69 Toyota GR YARIS Rally1 Hybrid Electric vehicle, taking home top podium position for the TOYOTA GAZOO Racing World Rally Team (TGR-WRT) for the third year in a row. Rovanperä’s peerless performance has extended his lead in the FIA World Rally Championship, while Toyota has increased its manufacturers’ championship lead to 57 points.

Guided by co-driver Jonne Halttunen, Rovanperä once again maneuvered his No. 69 GR YARIS Rally1 Hybrid Electric vehicle across some of the fastest roads in the WRC. He held a narrow lead despite having to run first on the loose gravel stages and was unbeatable thereafter as he pulled clear of the competition.

He recorded a remarkable run of 13 consecutive stage wins in the last two days of the rally including the rally-ending Power Stage, becoming the first driver to have such a streak of fastest times on a WRC round in 15 years.

Quickest in the final leg of the race by two seconds, he secured his second win of the season by 52.7s overall and claimed the maximum 30 points to increase his standings lead to 55 points. The victory is his 10th in the WRC in the two years since he became its youngest-ever winner at Rally Estonia 2021.

Akio Toyoda, TGR-WRT Chairman, commented: “Kalle, Jonne, congratulations on your victory, and three consecutive wins at Rally Estonia! Two years ago, it was Estonia where Kalle, 20 years old at the time, became the youngest WRC winner. Until then, the youngest winner record was held by Jari-Matti, at 22 years old. And now, 22-year-old Kalle has already won 10 WRC events. I would also like to congratulate him for becoming the youngest double-digit winner. The next WRC round is held in our hometown, Jyväskylä, Finland. I will head to Finland fully prepared for the team to carry the good momentum from Kenya and Estonia into the next round. We need to win. We will win!”

Over the years, Toyota has been participating in many different forms of motorsports, including Formula One, the World Endurance Championship (WEC), and the Nürburgring 24 ‎Hours endurance race. Toyota’s participation in these events was overseen by separate entities within the company until April 2015, when Toyota established TGR, ‎to consolidate all of its motorsports activities under one in-house brand. Representing ‎Toyota’s belief that ‘the roads build the people, and the people build the cars,’ TGR highlights the role of motorsports as a fundamental pillar of Toyota’s commitment to ‎making ‘ever-better’ cars. Harnessing years of experience gained under the extreme conditions of various motorsports events, TGR aims to forge new technologies and solutions that bring the freedom, adventure, and joy of driving to everyone.