This year the Croatia Rally was held as a round of the FIA European Rally Championship, but in 2026 it will return to the FIA World Rally Championship calendar, which it was also part of from 2021 to 2024. During that time, it has gained a reputation as one of rallying’s most challenging asphalt events, with frequent surface changes meaning that grip levels are constantly changing – and can be further complicated by the presence of gravel, mud or rain.

For GR Yaris Rally2 driver Yamamoto, this event provided a chance to add to the experience he gained of the tricky Croatian stages in 2024, and to prepare for the next and final round in his WRC2 campaign this year in Japan. Alongside him, James Fulton returned to the co-driver’s seat after missing the last two rallies due to personal reasons.

On Saturday, the longest day of the rally, Yamamoto was showing stronger pace during the afternoon loop, climbing up to ninth overall before he had to stop and change a wheel and tyre in SS6, losing around two minutes. While Sunday’s leg was shorter, it brought wetter and more challenging conditions. Yamamoto posted a top-five stage time in SS8 on his way to finishing 11th overall.

For the Program’s third generation of drivers Goto and Matsushita, this would be their first time contesting a rally with such characteristics, providing a very different challenge to their last asphalt event, Rally Islas Canarias in April.

Matsushita, co-driven by Pekka Kelander, was third in the ERC3 class for Rally3 machinery after SS1, but sustained damaged suspension in SS2 when he ran wide in a gravel-strewn corner. That brought an early end to his day, but he restarted to complete all of Sunday’s stages. Goto on the other hand completed all of Saturday’s stages with co-driver Jussi Lindberg, setting a fastest time in SS6 and climbing to third in the class, before sustaining suspension damage in a deep cut in Sunday’s opening stage that forced him to retire.

Quotes:
Juho Hänninen (TOYOTA GAZOO Racing WRC Challenge Program instructor):
“With Yuki the main purpose of this rally was to prepare for Rally Japan, after a long time not competing on asphalt. For this reason we focused on using the tyres we will have available in Japan rather than optimising our choices for this rally. The qualification was tricky for Yuki, so his starting position was not optimal on Saturday, and in the morning he was still finding his rhythm, but in the afternoon he was clearly driving better. On Sunday the conditions were really difficult and he managed them well while still being quite committed in his driving. He experienced all the possible conditions and tyre options, so that was good preparation for Japan and we hope he can do well there. For Shotaro and Takumi it was a really eye-opening experience, with the most difficult conditions they have ever seen on asphalt. Unfortunately, Takumi’s day ended early on Saturday but he could gain experience of the wet and muddy conditions on Sunday, while Shotaro gained his experience in the dry on Saturday and then had an early finish on Sunday. Both have shown very good progress and pace this season, and this kind of rally helps to show where we need to work more with them for the future.”

Yuki Yamamoto
“It was good to do an asphalt rally again after a long time since Rally Islas Canarias, and with very different roads and conditions. It was not so easy to get the feeling back immediately, but I think we had a steady and clever approach. Compared to last year in Croatia, the pace was OK at the start and then throughout Saturday it was improving all the time, and the split times were good in SS6 until we got the puncture. I’ve never seen conditions like the ones we had on Sunday, so it was not easy, but still we gained good knowledge, especially with the tyres. I had a few moments but it was nice to finish and get all the kilometres. It’s good preparation for Rally Japan and I’m looking forward to hopefully having a good performance there.”

Shotaro Goto
“This rally was completely new for me, so the aim was to gain as much experience as possible. The first day, Saturday, went really well and according to the plan. I started with a steady pace, and I was quite slow compared to the leader, but towards the end of the day I was able to improve the pace and I didn’t have any of the trouble that many other competitors had. So that was very good, but Sunday was like a totally different rally because of the rain. I tried to drive with the same plan as before, but I cut too much inside one corner, couldn’t get out of the ditch and damaged the car. It was a bit unfortunate but it’s part of the learning. Overall I’ve really enjoyed this year: I’ve made some mistakes but also had some good moments, and I learned even more than in my first year.”

Takumi Matsushita
“This was a new experience for me with conditions I haven’t come across in my career before. The first day started well in SS1, but we went out in SS2 which was a pity. There was a lot of gravel on that corner which I didn’t have marked in my pacenotes. It was sandy and more slippery than the other gravel places, and I should have compensated a little bit more to reduce my speed. On the second day the conditions were really extreme and tricky but it was still enjoyable in a way. I learned a lot and was happy to gain that experience. Overall I think I can be happy with this year. It was my first in four-wheel drive and in some rallies I could compete with the top guys in the class, so it’s been a very good year and good learning for me.”