The Frenchman, with co-driver Vincent Landet in the Toyota GR Yaris Rally1, started today’s final day of three Special Stages just one place ahead of his Toyota counterpart, Elphin Evans, and with a temporary two-point lead.
A decisive attack on the penultimate Asfan stage – in which he climbed from sixth to third overall – put the title in full control. So, with a careful pass in the final Power Stage he sealed the championship – the 9th of his impressive career and a maiden for Landé, who took over from Julien Ingracia at the end of 2022.
Ogier’s counterattack at Asfan came as Saturday’s leader Martins Sesks and Kalle Rovanpera both stopped for wheel changes after punctures, while Takamoto Katsuta had a rollover in his GR Yaris Rally1.
Evans also gained places, but the difference in finishing between the two meant that the Welshman was left in second place in the championship for the fifth time, missing out on the title by just four points in one of the most lopsided battles in recent years.
Despite competing on a reduced schedule of select events this year, Ogier and Landé had an impressive season. They missed three of the 14 rallies, but won more than half of them and finished 2025 with more stage wins than any other crew.
“What a season, really!” said the Frenchman at the finish. “What a battle with Elfyn and Scott, honestly. A great champion is only one who has a great opponent, and they were extremely strong, pushing us to the limit until the last stage of the year.
Congratulations to them, as well as to the entire Toyota Gazoo Racing team. It has been such a successful year. I am proud and very happy to be part of this family,” added the 41-year-old Ogier.
At the Saudi Arabia Rally, his final WRC of 2025, Thierry Neuville secured his first victory of the season – where he failed to defend his crown from last year – by 54.7 seconds, having overtaken Seskes on Saturday’s first stage.
Persistent shock absorber problems made the final kilometres difficult, but the Belgian kept his i20 N Rally1 away from the chaos behind him. Adrien Fourmey completed the 1-2 for Hyundai, although the Frenchman was left bitterly disappointed to have missed out on a potential first WRC victory when a one-minute penalty for early entry into control knocked him from the lead on Friday night.
Sami Pajari recovered from Friday’s puncture to finish fourth, 8.2 seconds ahead of Katsuta’s struggling Toyota, with Evans and Rovanpera taking sixth and seventh in their GR Yaris Rally1s.
M-Sport Ford’s Seks may not have taken his first win but he showed great promise for the future, winning five stages with co-driver Renard Francis and holding the lead after day two. But their double puncture at Asfan cost them almost eight minutes and they eventually retired before the Power Stage. This allowed his compatriots, Grégoire Muenster and Josh McErlin, to move up to eighth and ninth, while Oliver Solberg completed the top ten.
