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Toyota’s Rally1 car, developed around the team’s headquarters in Jyväskylä, has been honed on the fast gravel roads of Central Finland. It is therefore no surprise that the event’s high-speed stages suit both the car and its drivers exceptionally well. Toyota secured a one-two-three finish at its home event last week, with Sami Pajari leading Oliver Solberg and Elfyn Evans. The team could have achieved even more, but Sebastien Ogier crashed out of the lead on Saturday, while Takamoto Katsuta also encountered problems over the course of the weekend. Thierry Neuville dropped out of contention on Friday after damaging his suspension on a rock. Even so, the Belgian admitted Toyota was operating on another level. “We were only able to match them when the Toyotas were sweeping the road on Friday morning,” Neuville told Belgian broadcaster RTBF. “Once the road positions changed, Toyota switched into rocket mode,” he added. The 2024 World Rally Champion also highlighted one particular strength of Toyota’s cars. “Those cars always land back on all four wheels. Everything still works. On Sunday, Takamoto Katsuta hit a tree head-on and carried on as if nothing had happened,” Neuville said. The Belgian was referring to Katsuta’s mistake on the Power Stage. The Japanese driver went off the road but was able to continue to the finish. However, he dropped behind Neuville and lost fifth place overall.