Evans Edges Katsuta in Demanding Sweden Shakedown

WRC, Sportrik Media - Elfyn Evans struck first at Rally Sweden 2026, setting the benchmark time in a demanding Umeå City shakedown to edge team-mate Takamoto Katsuta.

The Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team driver clocked a 1m52.7s on his third and final pass of the 3.44km stage, finishing 0.6 seconds ahead of Katsuta. Conditions proved more challenging than anticipated, with loose snow and developing ruts affecting grip levels from the outset.

Unusually, Rally3 crews had already tackled the stage earlier in the morning, leaving the surface heavily cut up before Rally1 cars began their runs. The result was inconsistent braking performance and rapidly evolving lines through the corners.

“It is more messy and loose than what we expected,” Evans admitted. “The weekend ahead should be nice. Let’s see how the conditions are, it will depend a lot on what we can do.”

Championship leader Oliver Solberg slotted into third, 1.1 seconds adrift, though not without drama. The Swede brushed a snowbank on his opening run, briefly threatening to derail his home rally start.

“Oh my god, it was slippery, really slippery,” Solberg said. “There was snow everywhere. I missed one corner. It is amazing to start your home rally… but it is not going to be easy.”

Toyota underlined its early strength with Sami Pajari completing a top-four lockout at 1.3 seconds off the pace. Behind them, the order became more mixed.

Esapekka Lappi, running a third Hyundai i20 N Rally1 for Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team, overshot a junction on his first pass and was forced to reverse. He recovered to set the fifth-fastest time with a 1m54.3s effort.

“I hope it will not go like that all the time,” Lappi said. “There was no grip under braking at all in the loose snow.”

From M-Sport Ford World Rally Team, Jon Armstrong placed sixth, while Martins Sesks stalled his Puma Rally1 on the start line during his first run before recovering to seventh. 2024 world champion Thierry Neuville ended the session eighth, ahead of Adrien Fourmaux and Josh McErlean.

The rally begins in earnest this evening with SS1 Umeå at 19:05 local time, before crews tackle 18 speed tests covering 300 kilometres through Sweden’s frozen forests.

Full Rally Sweden 2026 results:
https://sportrik.com/en/wrc/result?tahun=2026

WRC 2026 standings:
https://sportrik.com/en/wrc/klasemen

WRC 2026 calendar:
https://sportrik.com/en/wrc/calendar