Takamoto Katsuta sets the pace at Rally Finland’s shakedown stage – almost a second clear of Adrien Fourmaux and Oliver Solberg.
Round 10 of the 2026 World Rally Championship, Finland is one of the most eagerly anticipated events on the calendar due to its history and flat-out nature.
Katsuta finished second last year to Kalle Rovanperä, who is not competing in 2026, and would dearly love to go one better this time around.
“Of course I really want to win this one as it’s my second home rally, but it’s one of the most challenging rallies in the world,” Katsuta said. “So if you get a great result here, it means you are a special driver as well.”
If Ruuhimäki shakedown is any indication, Katsuta is dialled in this week as he beat second-best Fourmaux and Solberg by 0.9 seconds.
Rally Estonia winner Sami Pajari, however, was the quickest driver after the first pass, often seen as a strong indicator of pace given it’s the first time the drivers are tackling the test.
Pajari eventually set the sixth-fastest time, 1.9s off the pace and equal with fellow Finn Esapekka Lappi.
“It’s a fully new challenge and it’s not going to be any easier than it was in Estonia, even if we did well,” Pajari observed. “The home rally is always sepcial one so I hope we can really enjoy it, and hopefully the time is there.”
Championship leader Elfyn Evans was fourth quickest, 1.7s off Toyota team-mate Katsuta’s pace but 0.8s down on Fourmaux and Solberg.
“I’m looking forward to the weekend,” said Evans. “We obviously have to enjoy these [Rally1] cars while we have them on these roads.”
Seventh to 10th places on shakedown were separated by just one tenth of a second, with Thierry Neuville 0.1s clear of Jon Armstrong, who was 0.1s clear of Josh McErlean, who was 0.1s clear of Mãrtiņš Sesks.
Reigning world champion Sébastien Ogier completed the Rally1 runners in 11th spot, 0.6s down on Sesks and three seconds shy of Katsuta’s best effort.
With co-driver Vincent Landais unable to compete in Finland for personal reasons, eight-time champion Julien Ingrassia has been drafted in alongside Ogier this weekend.
“For sure I’d have loved Vincent being there, we’re thinking about him and his family. But at the same time I’m happy Julien accepted my call to be back with me after five years,” Ogier said.
“He’s as crazy as before, very precise on everything so I’m quite sure he will do the job perfectly again. I’m definitely here to try and fight for the win, so it’s all on me to live up to it.”
Rally Finland begins with the Harju stage on Thursday evening before the forest action commences on Friday.
