Ott Tänak keeps title chances alive with Central European Rally third place
Ott Tänak finished third at the WRC Central European Rally on Sunday, portal Dirtfish reported, a result which keeps him in with a chance of taking the title this year.
The result also means Tänak and his compatriot and co-driver Martin Järveoja have finished on the podium every time the event, which began in 2023, has been run, including last year's win.
This weekend's result was also an improvement on the sixth place Tänak held after the initial stages on Thursday at the Central European Rally, a race which crosses the German-Austrian border and also has stages in the Czech Republic.
He is now 50 points behind top of the drivers' table, and with 70 left to play for, meaning he is in with a mathematical chance of taking his second drivers' title.
Meanwhile, Tänak's teammate and reigning world champion Thierry Neuville (Belgium), however, had a poor weekend and is now officially a former world champ – unlike the Estonian, he has no mathematical chance of defending the title.
The final result was a Toyota one-two: Double world champion Kalle Rovanperä (Finland) won with teammate Elfyn Evans (Wales) second, meaning the team has clinched the 2025 manufacturers' title. Evans has also retaken the overall drivers' lead, as veteran driver and eight-time world champion Sébastien Ogier crashed out on Saturday.
This was also Toyota's first win at the Central European event.
That Toyota was on the cusp of a manufacturers' title win was the main reason Hyundai has allowed Tänak to race for himself for the last three races of the year, starting with the Central European Rally, to avoid incurring a penalty over a planned engine change.
On the day, Tänak and Järveoja were 5.6 seconds behind Evans, and Tänak secured their first podium finish since their home rally in July.
"For sure we tried everything this weekend, no question, but I think that's what we deserve," Tänak told DirtFish.
Another Toyota man, Takamoto Katsuta (Japan), was fourth, followed by Tänak's teammate Adrien Fourmaux (France), and WRC2 driver Sami Pajari (Finland).
Ogier got consolation from winning both Super Sunday and the powerstage.
Evans, as noted, tops the table now, with 247 points, followed by Ogier and Rovanperä both on 234. Tänak, the first non-Toyota driver, is on 197 points and the only remaining driver who still in theory can win the title. Neuville is fifth in the table (166 points), followed by Katsuta (110 points).
Two more races remain in 2025, both in November: Japan runs November 6-9, and the season finale takes place in Saudi Arabia, November 26-29.
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Editor: Andrew Whyte
