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Ogier relishing new WRC challenge as title race heats up
There is very little Sebastien Ogier hasn’t experienced in the World Rally Championship as an eight-time world champion and a winner of 64 events, but this weekend poses a brand new challenge.
Paraguay’s addition to the 2025 calendar has the Toyota driver relishing the rare prospect of an event where the entire field is effectively starting for zero. The South American nation will present 19 all-new stages and conditions for the world’s best drivers to master.
It will mean the onus will be firmly placed on the drivers and co-drivers. Whoever adapts to the new conditions the quickest and makes the best pacenotes will more often than not come out on top. It’s a prospect that 41-year-old Ogier is relishing.
Interestingly, Ogier has been successful twice before when new events have joined the WRC, having won the inaugural Rally Monza in 2020 and Croatia Rally in 2021, albeit both events were held on asphalt, while Paraguay will offer up soft gravel roads.
“I always enjoy the challenge of a new rally like this one in Paraguay where everybody will be starting from zero, writing new pacenotes from scratch and needing to adapt as quickly as possible, and I’m looking forward to discovering it,” said Ogier.
Mastering another brand new rally in the hope of adding a 65th career win to his glittering career is of course the goal as Ogier aims to help Toyota take another step towards defending its WRC manufacturers’ crown. An opportunity to conquer a new rally aside, Ogier has added another objective to his list for 2025 having now committed to a title for a record equalling ninth world crown.
The Frenchman has stated that his primary aim this year has been to help Toyota’s manufacturers’ title hopes given his wish not to contest a full plethora of WRC events. But such has been his success this year, Ogier heads to Paraguay only 13 points adrift of the drivers’ championship lead despite sitting out rallies in Sweden, Kenya and Estonia.
Ogier’s 2025 campaign to date has so far proved highly impressive, racking up three wins (Monte Carlo, Portugal, Sardinia) while recording three further podium finishes from his six starts. The run of results has yielded a stunning points per round average of 27.2 from a maximum 35 points on offer at each rally.
“Rally Finland was amazing for our team and good for the manufacturers ’championship, which has been our main target again this season,” said Ogier after finishing third in Finland earlier this month.
“Also in the drivers ’championship, to have four drivers so close is great for the fans and it’s exciting to be part of that fight. We’ve been on the podium in every rally we’ve started and we’re going to try to keep that up in the next events if we can.”
Should Ogier maintain his 100% WRC podium streak in Paraguay this weekend, the title race could become even closer as the season enters its final stretch.
Watch WRC on DAZN
Follow all the action of the FIA World Rally Championship LIVE this weekend from Paraguay 29th -31st August. Three days not to be missed! 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.
