The WRC champion helping Katsuta emerge as a genuine title contender

Takamoto Katsuta is a genuine challenger for the 2026 World Rally Championship title.

History was made in Croatia last weekend as he became the first Japanese driver to top the WRC standings after claiming a second career win in dramatic circumstances, arriving immediately after a breakthrough maiden victory in Kenya last month. Katsuta was lost for words when hearing the almost unbelievable milestone he’d achieved, and it is fair to say nobody could have predicted that the fan favourite would be sitting pretty at the top of the WRC tree after four rounds.

“I don’t know, I never thought about it [what it means to be the first Japanese driver to lead the WRC standings],” said a stunned Katsuta, while his co-driver Aaron Johnston perhaps best summed up the scenario the pair have found themselves in: “If you had told me we would be leading the championship at the start of the season I would have said you were dreaming.”

The performances and the statistics are there in black and white. Katsuta has enjoyed a quite extraordinary start to what has been a crazy and unpredictable start to the 2026 season. The 33-year-old’s seven-point lead over Toyota team-mate Elfyn Evans after four rallies is thoroughly deserved.   

After a challenging opener in Monte Carlo that netted seventh, Katsuta has gone on to challenge for victory in the next three events. In Sweden, he was knocking on the door of a first win and was narrowly beaten to victory by Evans to the tune of 14.3s. In Kenya, on his 94th WRC start, Katsuta drove smartly to conquer the toughest WRC event in recent memory to claim an emotional maiden win.

And now last weekend Katsuta again was locked in the victory battle throughout the rally before a dramatic final stage slip from Hyundai’s Thierry Neuville elevated a second-place finish into a surprise victory.

Katsuta's maiden WRC win has become the breakthrough to his title challenge

Katsuta’s incredible start to 2026 is perhaps best highlighted when compared to his previous full-time WRC campaigns. This year he has accrued 81 points from four rounds, which is more than double his previous best tally of 39 achieved in 2024, and is the only driver to finish every round inside the top seven.  

In the current Rally1 era, only two-time world champion Kalle Rovanpera (87 points - 2022) and Elfyn Evans (95 points - 2025) have scored more than 80 points after four rounds, and in both cases they either lifted the title or finished as runner-up.    

How Katsuta has fared after four rounds as full-time WRC driver

*Super Sunday points were introduced from 2024

There has never been any question over Katsuta’s speed, but consistency has proved to be an area that he has struggled to master. But the same cannot be said so far this year, so what has changed?

"Maybe my small brain helps a lot to deal with the pressure! I don’t need to think anything about that [the title race]. I just focus on my job" Takamoto Katsuta

Toyota deputy team principal and four-time WRC world champion Juha Kankkunen says he has noticed a change in his driver following the emotional win in Kenya. It was a win that lifted the pressure and the burden of finally achieving that first win, having endured the despair of coming so close on several occasions.

“A Japanese driver with a Japanese manufacturer leading the world championship has never happened before. I’m so happy,” Kankkunen told Autosport. “He has changed a bit. He was a bit hesitant before but now he is more relaxed and concentrating on the job he is doing. You can see from his face that now he is more concentrated than before.”

Another positive change Katsuta is making the most of is having 2019 world champion Ott Tanak working as a coach and mentor this year. After deciding to take a sabbatical year the former Hyundai, Toyota and M-Sport-Ford driver is watching the stages from afar and offering advice to Katsuta.

Kankkunen has seen a change in Katsuta since his first win

Photo by: Toyota Racing

“He [Ott] has done an incredible job, at every event. Basically he is following every stage on the television. He knows already which section I lost time and what has happened,” explained Katsuta in the post-event press conference in Croatia. “Mentally, it is a huge help especially this weekend and Kenya as well. When I doubt myself about whether I should push more or be careful, I can have a very quick chat with Ott, and I can trust him. It is very nice how he is supporting me and it is a very big support.”

It can be easy to get carried away by the stunning start to the season but Katsuta knows how quickly things can change in the WRC, and is choosing not to think about the title race. It’s a very smart, calculated and mature approach which is exactly what is required to succeed in this championship.

“Maybe my small brain helps a lot to deal with the pressure!" He joked when asked about leading the championship in Croatia. “I don’t need to think anything about that [the title race]. I just focus on my job. I have very good support from the team. I feel strong enough but there are a lot of things I can improve myself, so I really focus on this and then we will see what can happen in the future.”

Judging by the amount of drama already witnessed in only four rounds this year, there will no doubt be many more twists and turns in the WRC title race. But given the fluctuations in performances and results seen in the championship already, Katsuta’s speed, newfound confidence and consistency could turn him into a genuine title threat.

Katsu-him if you can

Photo by: Toyota Racing