Toyota Yaris WRC

Lore & Background

The Toyota Yaris WRC entered its testing and development phase in March 2014, ahead of its début in the 2017 season. Development and operation of the cars were overseen by four-time World Drivers' Champion Tommi Mäkinen, and entered under the banner of Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT. The car made its first public appearance in May 2016 during testing in Palokka-Puuppola, with Mäkinen and Juho Hänninen driving.

The Toyota Gazoo Racing three-car team of Toyota Yaris WRCs won the 2018 manufacturers' championship, followed in 2019 by the team's Ott Tänak and Martin Järveoja winning the drivers' and co-drivers' championships. The car also secured the 2020 drivers' and co-drivers' championships with Sébastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia, and a sweep of the 2021 manufacturers', drivers' and co-drivers' championships.

A successor known as the Toyota GR Yaris WRC, based on the 2020 GR Yaris road car, was due to be introduced in 2021 but was later decided against in favour of sticking with the existing rally car. The Yaris WRC's true successor, the Toyota GR Yaris Rally1, would not be racing until the year after.

Reader's Guide

The Toyota Yaris WRC marked Toyota's return to the World Rally Championship after a 17-year absence, ending a hiatus that began when the manufacturer withdrew at the end of the 1999 season to focus on Le Mans Prototype and Formula One programmes. The car was developed under the guidance of four-time World Drivers' Champion Tommi Mäkinen, who oversaw its testing from March 2014 and its public debut in May 2016. Competing from the 2017 season onward, the Yaris WRC quickly proved competitive, winning the manufacturers' championship in 2018. The car's success continued with Ott Tänak and Martin Järveoja taking the drivers' and co-drivers' titles in 2019, followed by Sébastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia winning both in 2020 and again in 2021, when the team also secured the manufacturers' championship. The car was driven by a roster including Ogier, Elfyn Evans, Tänak, Kalle Rovanperä and Takamoto Katsuta. A planned successor, the Toyota GR Yaris WRC based on the 2020 GR Yaris road car, was considered for 2021 but ultimately not introduced; the true successor, the Toyota GR Yaris Rally1, debuted the year after the Yaris WRC's final season.

Did You Know?

• The Toyota Yaris WRC is based on the Vitz-based XP130 Toyota Yaris.
• It was the first Toyota car in the WRC since the manufacturer withdrew after the 1999 season.
• The car won the manufacturers' championship in 2018 and 2021.
• Ott Tänak and Martin Järveoja won the 2019 drivers' and co-drivers' championships with the Yaris WRC.