Never take anything for granted, especially in the WRC. It almost seems like a curse that started at the Croatia Rally, when on Super Sunday Thierry Neuville lost the victory at the very last moment due to a mistake. A similar episode happened in the next round in the Canary Islands, this time to the detriment of Oliver Solberg, and for the third consecutive time today, on the eve of the Power Stage of the Portuguese rally. Compared to the previous two episodes, this time there was no accident that denied Sébastien Ogier the win, but a puncture that forced the Frenchman to park his Toyota. An episode that opened the doors to victory for Thierry Neuville, his first personal win and the first for Hyundai this season.
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Super Sunday Report
The last day of the Portuguese rally did not start positively for Sébastien Ogier, who with 5th place in the first Super Sunday stage opened the door for Neuville’s comeback in the standings, third at the end of a rain-affected stage. The gap between the two thus decreased to 14 seconds, with Evans winning his first stage in Portugal. From SS21 the conditions worsened significantly, and from here the twists began: besides the unexpected victory of Virves at the wheel of the Skoda WRC2, the episode that again overturned the overall standings occurred in the following stage: just when everything seemed close to Ogier’s second consecutive win, the Frenchman dramatically lost the rally lead due to a puncture, slipping to sixth in the standings. So, Neuville took the lead at the most crucial moment, despite finishing 6th in SS22. The Belgian then managed the advantage in the Power Stage, finishing 2nd behind Fourmaux and thus securing his first stage win since the victory in Saudi Arabia last season. A win that was also the last for Hyundai.
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2026 Rally of Portugal, final standings (top-10)
| POS. | DRIVER | CAR | TIME/GAP |
| 1 | Thierry Neuville | Hyundai | 3:53:01.7 |
| 2 | Oliver Solberg | Toyota | +16.3 |
| 3 | Elfyn Evans | Toyota | +29.1 |
| 4 | Adrien Fourmaux | Hyundai | +54.8 |
| 5 | Takamoto Katsuta | Toyota | +1:12.6 |
| 6 | Sébastien Ogier | Toyota | +1:26.6 |
| 7 | Sami Pajari | Toyota | +2:50.9 |
| 8 | Dani Sordo | Hyundai | +4:10.0 |
| 9 | Martins Sesks | Ford | +6:49.2 |
| 10 | Teemu Suninen | Toyota (WRC2) | +11:13.8 |
Next appointment
After one of the most demanding rallies on the calendar, the world championship takes a short break until the end of this month, with drivers returning to battle on asphalt tracks. From May 28 to 31, the challenges will take place outside the European continent, more precisely in Japan.
