WRC leaders to bounce back in Croatia Rally
4th April 2026The World Rally Championship title contenders, Elfyn Evans and Oliver Solberg, will be looking to bounce back at next week’s Croatia Rally.
Feature image credit: Jaanus Ree // Red Bull Content Pool
WRC will return to Europe next weekend for the fourth round of the 14-rally season, Croatia Rally. It will be the first time since 2024, which was won by Toyota’s Sebastien Ogier, followed by Elfyn Evans.
However, Europe’s return allows the current championship a chance to reset after they retired from Safari Rally Kenya back in March. Both Evans and Solberg endured a painful end to the African rally, leaving them vulnerable to those further down the championship table.
Now, with a return to asphalt and more timid conditions, the championship rivals should be expected to reset themselves for the European leg, which includes Croatia, the Canary Islands, and Portugal.
What happened in Africa?
The current championship leader, Evans, saw the biggest points loss in Africa last time out as the Welshman suffered suspension failure during the weekend’s iconic Sleeping Warrior test.
He was running second overall before being forced to stop out on stage.
Evans dragged his rear-right tyre through thick, soaking mud before he finally pulled off to the side. The championship leader managed to score six points from the event, but his championship rivals outscored him.
Oliver Solberg scored 11 points in a weekend where he was forced to retire on the road section, suffering electrical and transmission issues. The five-point advantage meant that the Swede moved to within eight points of the leading Toyota.
The biggest winner of the weekend was both Evans and Solberg’s teammate, Takamoto Katsuta, who went on to secure his first-ever win in the WRC. Securing 25 points in Kenya means the Japanese driver sits only 11 points behind Evans.
Evans will have the advantage
Of the championship-leading pair, Evans will have the advantage over Solberg to reset heading into Croatia. This comes down to previous data of the event, of which Evans has excelled in Croatia.
In the event’s four-year history in the WRC, so far, the championship leader has found himself on the podium on three of the four events (2021, 2023 and 2024). His closest finish, and near-victory in Croatia, came in 2021, when he finished 0.6s behind the winner, Ogier.
However, Evans was able to finally secure a win in 2023, finishing over 26 seconds ahead of the 2019 world champion, M-Sport Ford’s Ott Tanak, that season.
Solberg has not shared similar success compared to Evans in the European country. In his only Rally1 outing at the event in 2022, for Hyundai, Solberg failed to finish. During his following WRC2 competitions, the Swede only secured the podium once, in 2023, with a 10th-place finish the following year.
But, with his stand-out performance in Estonia last year and his dominant win in Monte, this year, you’d be foolish to think Solberg can’t pull the rabbit out of the hat in Croatia.
Read more WRC here:
- Takamoto Katsuta inherits Safari Rally Kenya lead after top three retire
- Solberg heads Safari Rally Kenya after a chaotic Saturday morning
- Oliver Solberg maintains Safari Rally Kenya lead despite puncture
- WRC confirm Safari Rally Kenya delay after Camp Moran cancelled
- Oliver Solberg charges ahead on opening day of Safari Rally Kenya
- Adrian Fourmaux tops first run of Safari Rally Kenya shakedown
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Hi, I’m Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion.
I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I’ve loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.
Kamron Kent
Hi, I'm Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion. I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I've loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.
