Elfyn Evans Feeling Up and Down Even Though He’s Back on Top

The Welsh driver voiced both frustration and satisfaction after a weekend that never quite fell perfectly into place.

Evans finished second behind Sébastien Ogier, collecting strong points across the final day to edge back into the championship lead after five rounds. 

Yet, despite the result, Evans was clear that an early setback ultimately dictated his ceiling.

READ MORE: Elfyn Evans Insists he Will go Again for More After Finishing Runner-Up for Fifth Time

"It has been a solid weekend," said Evans.

"It was a poor start and that put us out of the fight for the win. I have had mixed feelings. Congrats to Seb, he has driven an exceptional weekend."

That blend of realism and quiet optimism summed up Evans’ rally. He remained firmly in contention across the stages, claiming three wins on Saturday as conditions shifted, and then delivering when it mattered most on Sunday — topping the Power Stage and Super Sunday standings to maximise his points haul.

READ MORE: Elfyn Evans Admits Caution Cost Him in World Title Bid

Ultimately, he finished 19.9 seconds adrift of Ogier, who controlled the rally from early on and secured his first win of the season. 

But Evans’ consistency, allied with his late push, proved decisive in the wider championship picture.

Evans added: “It’s been a solid weekend for us with a pretty good final day and a good haul of points at the end of it. 

“We made a bit of a slow start on Friday and that really put us too far back in the fight for the win, but things have worked out pretty well in the end. 

“It was very close again between us, Seb and Oliver. It was unfortunate what happened to Oliver, but congratulations to Seb, who has driven an exceptional weekend and deserves the win.”

The closing stages were shaped by drama elsewhere, with Oliver Solberg — who had been Ogier’s closest challenger — crashing out on the penultimate stage. 

That incident cleared the path for a dominant team result, with Toyota locking out the top four positions.

Behind Evans, Sami Pajari continued his impressive form to take third, while Takamoto Katsuta finished fourth to sit just two points behind Evans in the standings. The result underlined the team’s strength, but for Evans, the focus remained on execution rather than dominance.

His ability to recover from a difficult opening day and still extract maximum value from the rally highlighted why he now leads the championship once again — even if, by his own admission, the performance was not without its imperfections.

As the series heads next to Portugal, Evans does so with momentum restored, but also with the sense that there is more to come if he can put together a complete weekend from start to finish.

Rally Islas Canarias result

1. Sebastien Ogier (France), Toyota, 2 hours 43 minutes 18.9 seconds

2. Elfyn Evans (Great Britain), Toyota, +19.9s

3. Sami Pajari (Finland), Toyota, +1m 40.8s

4. Takamoto Katsuta (Japan), Toyota, +1m 51.2s

5. Adrien Fourmaux (France), Hyundai, +3m 29.5s

6. Thierry Neuville (Belgium), Hyundai, +3m 41.0s

7. Dani Sordo (Spain), Hyundai, +3m 57.7s

8. Josh McErlean (Ireland) Ford, +5m 45.4s

Selected

11. Jon Armstrong (Ireland) Ford, +7m 52.2s

FIA World Rally Championship drivers' standings (provisional)

1. Elfyn Evans (Great Britain), Toyota,101 points

2. Takamoto Katsuta (Japan), Toyota, 99

3. Sami Pajari (Finland), Toyota, 72

4. Oliver Solberg (Sweden), Toyota, 68

5. Adrien Fourmaux (France), Hyundai, 59

6. Sebastien Ogier (France), Toyota, 58

7. Thierry Neuville (Belgium), Hyundai, 35

Selected

13. Jon Armstrong (Ireland), Ford, 10

20. Josh McErlean (Ireland), Ford, 6