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Expert Opinion: WRC title impossible to predict ahead of Saudi Arabia season final
After 13 gruelling events the fight for the 2025 World Rally Championship will come down to one final marathon in the unknown of the Saudi Arabian desert this weekend.
The battle for the title couldn’t be more finely poised with three Toyota drivers; Elfyn Evans, Sebastien Ogier and Kalle Rovanpera in contention for the ultimate prize in rallying.
Evans, vying for a maiden world title, and to become the first British world champion since Richard Burns (2001), holds a three-point lead ahead of Ogier, who is hoping to leave Saudi Arabia with a record equalling ninth world crown. Then there is two-time world champion Rovanpera, who is 24 points behind and eager to end his stint in the WRC on a high, before going to chase a circuit racing dream next year.
Standing in the way of the trio are 17 completely unknown rocky stages where misfortune can occur in heartbeat. The scene is set but to get a read of the form book, DAZN News spoke to legendary WRC television commentator Becs Williams for an expert opinion.
The title battle is a lottery, impossible to predict
Toyota
“It is a toss of a coin, it is that much of a lottery. If you were a betting person don’t be for this event and keep your money in your wallet is my advice. You cannot put your money on anybody. Kalle Rovanpera could come through and take this even though he is 24 points behind. There is no script for this.
“It couldn’t get more level to have the championship decided on the final round which nobody has ever been to. There is no base for comparison to other events. We can’t really compare these stages to Jordan when the WRC last visited the Middle East in 2011. There is a very level playing field and not a huge amount of points in it certainly between Elfyn Evans and Sebastien Ogier.
"I don’t think it is in anyone’s hands. Seb may have eight world titles but Elfyn has the championship lead and is maybe the calmer of the two right now."
How will the title contenders attack the voyage into the unknown?
Hyundai
“It is hard to have a strategy for an event like this because the conditions are going to be ever evolving and ever changing and that is another critical factor. The drivers don’t know how the stages are going to change and we have already seen on shakedown how many rocks have been pulled out, but it is not just that. On some of the stages there is bedrock underneath which is already starting to come out from the recce alone, so that could cause problems. It is difficult to have a strategy but you have to be able to read the road in front of you, and experience will pay here. They will have to balance speed against the safer side of their brains. There has to be some brainwork.
“Even though Elfyn has never won a title I don’t think that is a disadvantage for him in this scenario because he has been in this situation many times before. I don’t think he is stressed in any way, and he is just going to do his usual thing. Kalle Rovanpera has already said he is feeling quite emotional with this being his last rally for some time, and I think that is a really interesting factor. He is 24 points from the title and if it happens, its great for him but he doesn’t need it to happen. Is the absolute hunger for it there or does he just want to finish the season in a good way?
“With Seb, the hunger is definitely there and he said many rallies ago that he will win the title. I’m sure to equal nine-time world rally champion Sebastien Loeb has been there in his mind for a good few years so out of all of them, he is maybe, and I don’t want to use the word desperate, but now he is in position to take it, and that might not happen next year with a partial programme.
“Elfyn has been the only driver to finish every event in a points paying position. You need that consistency and you need to be consistent throughout this entire event. We have seen Seb make mistakes and Kalle make mistakes, but we haven’t seen Elfyn make mistakes this year and we don’t want to see that change on the final round. Elfyn’s head has been in the right place this year. He hasn’t overdriven this year and I think that is going to be a critical factor this weekend.”
Expect tyre trouble on Saudi’s rough stages
Hyundai
“Even if this year had been the 10th year, using these Hankook tyres we would still have tyre trouble here. The sharpness of the rocks is acute and you would have to be sporting something really underperforming to not get a puncture out there. Trying to avoid the rocks is going to be really difficult. There is going to be an emphasis on the tyres and they are going to have to be as careful as they can while still performing."
Can Hyundai end a poor season on a high or will M-Sport conjure a surprise?
M-Sport
“For the Hyundai team they really need a good result to round off a terrible season. Defending champion Thierry Neuville may walk away without winning a rally this year and that is not an accolade anyone wants.
“It will be Ott Tanak’s last rally for we don't know how long, so how much will he throw at this weekend? In these kind of conditions I’m sure he will relish the challenge. Adrien Fourmaux was perhaps the most measured of all the Hyundai drivers saying that a balance needs to be found and drivers will need to be clever. The positive attitude he has taken from having this sports psychologist on board this year I think has really revolutionised his thinking and he is in a really good place mentally. Who knows what kind of podium we could see here, could it be vastly different? I hope so.
“If there is going to be a M-Sport-Ford that makes strides this weekend it is going to be Nasser Al-Attiyah given all the experience he has with the terrain, even if he doesn’t completely understand the car just yet. For someone who has won the Middle East Rally Championship 20 times and has battled through Dakar, and understands how things will change and evolve and if he doesn’t get near the podium I will be surprised. I think the wealth of knowledge he will bring to the team will be invaluable. He is a great character and to have him back in the WRC after 10 years is a real boost for the championship.”
Watch WRC on DAZN
Follow all the action from the FIA World Rally Championship finale LIVE this weekend from Rally Saudi Arabia - 26th -29th November. The title gets decided right here, right now. The 2025 World Rally Championship is available through DAZN on its own dedicated app channel, Rally TV. It is available either as a dedicated Rally TV subscription, or as part of your existing DAZN subscription for a small add-on fee.
DAZN is the home of Rally TV worldwide, excluding Estonia, Finland, France, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Sweden, China, Hong Kong and Japan.
Rally TV also broadcasts every rally from the FIA European Rally Championship.
Watch every WRC and ERC rally this year on DAZN's 24-hour dedicated Rally TV channel. For more information on prices, subscriptions and more, click here.
