Ogier Clinches Record-Equalling Ninth World Title with TOYOTA GAZOO Racing at Rally Saudi Arabia

TOYOTA GAZOO Racing World Rally Team (TGR-WRT) celebrated a thrilling season finale at the first-ever Rally Saudi Arabia, where Sébastien Ogier and co-driver Vincent Landais secured third place in the No. 17 Toyota GR YARIS Rally1 to clinch the 2025 FIA World Rally Championship. This marks Ogier’s ninth world title, equaling the all-time record, and the first co-drivers’ championship crown for Landais.

The result continues a dominant era for TGR-WRT: it is the sixth time in seven years that a TGR crew has been crowned world champions, and the fourth time in five years that the team and Toyota have swept all three championships, having already clinched the manufacturers’ crown in October’s Central European Rally. In total, it is the 10th drivers’ title achieved at the wheel of a Toyota.

Akio Toyoda, TGR-WRT Chairman, commented: “Wow! He is surely strong! When I watch Seb, that’s the thought that comes to mind. Congratulations on the ninth championship, and congratulations to Vincent on his first title as well! Juha, Jari-Matti, and everyone in the team, thank you so much for the hard work this season and bringing the manufacturers’ championship. I hope everybody takes a good rest for a while. Merry Christmas!”

Rally Saudi Arabia in Jeddah delivered some of the toughest conditions of the season, combining loose desert sand with rocky mountain stages and high temperatures that pushed both drivers and vehicles to the limit. Ogier and Landais maintained a consistent and calculated pace from the outset, avoiding the heavy time losses that affected many competitors across the abrasive surface. Their disciplined strategy paid off on the final day, securing third place overall and the vital championship points needed to decide the title after a season featuring six victories and 10 podiums from 11 starts.

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.

Race Notes:

•    No. 17 Toyota GR YARIS Rally1 (Sébastien Ogier and Vincent Landais)
•    Position: 3rd
•    Time: 3 hours, 22 minutes, and 20.6 seconds