20 Jan 2026 FIA World Rally Championship – Rallye Monte-Carlo – FIA Event Preview
2026 FIA World Rally Championship – Rallye Monte-Carlo – FIA Event Preview
RALLYE MONTE-CARLO
The 2026 FIA World Rally Championship gets underway at Rallye Monte-Carlo (January 22-25) – the Alpine classic marking the first of 14 rounds which lie in wait through the season.
The route for this year’s season-opener has evolved from 2025 and includes new stages, new sections of stages and the return of the fan-favourite Monaco Circuit stage on Saturday evening. Starting in Monaco on Thursday (January 22), the rally moves north to Gap before returning south to Monaco ahead of Sunday’s leg.
First across the start ramp – and with the #1 on the doors of their Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 – will be defending world champions Sébastien Ogier / Vincent Landais. There are a further four factory Toyotas for Elfyn Evans / Scott Martin, Takamoto Katsuta / Aaron Johnston, Oliver Solberg / Elliott Edmonson and Sami Pajari / Marko Salminen. Thierry Neuville / Martijn Wydaeghe and Adrien Fourmaux / Alexandre Coria are joined by Hayden Paddon / John Kennard as Hyundai Motorsport looks to challenge the recent series domination of Toyota Gazoo Racing. M-Sport Ford World Rally Team fields three Puma Rally1s for Josh McErlean / Eoin Treacy, Grégoire Munster / Louis Louka and new signings Jon Armstrong / Shane Byrne.
Rallye Monte-Carlo marks Lancia’s return to the FIA World Rally Championship; the Italian manufacturer is bringing a pair of Ypsilon Rally2 HF Integrales as part of a 25-car battle for WRC2 points.
This year’s event comprises 17 stages across four days, totalling 339.15 competitive kilometres.
FAST FACTS
KING OGIER
Reigning FIA World Rally champion Sébastien Ogier has more Rallye Monte[1]Carlo victories than any other driver with 10, and nine in the WRC. In 2026, he could extend that further, with Sébastien Loeb (eight) and Tommi Mäkinen and Walter Röhrl (four) his closest challengers.
LANCIA’S BACK
After 12,474 days away from official FIA World Rally Championship competition, Lancia officially returns to the series in 2026 with Yohan Rossel and Nikolay Gryazin competing in WRC2. Its last appearance as a manufacturer prior to Rallye Monte-Carlo 2026 was the RAC Rally 1991.
RALLY1 DEBUTANTS
Two drivers make their very first appearances in Rally1 cars at Rallye Monte-Carlo. Hyundai’s Hayden Paddon has competed in the WRC’s top class before, but not since 2018 when World Rally Cars remained active. M-Sport’s Jon Armstrong is a new face among the factory teams. Along with co-driver Sean Byrne, Armstrong makes his first start in the WRC’s top class.
SONS OF THE STARS
Pablo Sarrazin (Citroën C3 Rally2) and Eliott Delecour (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2) follow in the footsteps of their fathers at this year’s Rallye Monte-Carlo. Pablo’s dad Stéphane’s Monte Carlo peak was fifth overall for Subaru World Rally Team in 2006 (although he claimed a 2009 podium when the event was a round of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge) while Eliott’s father François won the rally for Ford in 1994.
WRC MEETS FORMULA 1
For the first time since 2008, Rallye Monte-Carlo features a stage around the lower half of the famous Monaco Grand Prix circuit. Called ‘Monaco Circuit’, the 2.96km stage begins at Rascasse corner before continuing along the start / finish straight and through Sainte Devote. After a hairpin right, the stage rejoins the F1 circuit before Tabac and proceeds for two laps before finishing in front of Rascasse.
SURFACE
With a route running across high alpine passes – including the world-famous Col de Turini at 1607 metres – predicting the surface and subsequent grip levels for Rallye Monte-Carlo presents one of the season’s most complicated challenges.
The base surface is asphalt, but that surface frequently becomes covered with snow, ice or rain. A dry start can often give way to rain which then turns to snow and ice the higher the stage the climbs. Conditions typically evolve too, meaning tyre choice is always a major conundrum at Rallye Monte-Carlo.
In an effort to cope with ever-changing conditions, the crews are permitted a choice of four tyres – more than on any other WRC round.
RALLY HISTORY
Widelyconsideredtobe theoldestrallyintheworld,Monte-Carlohas ahistory whichdates back to 1911 – when the event was conceived as part of a tourism push to encourage people from northern Europe to venture through the mountains to the sun-drenched Mediterranean coast.
Rallye Monte-Carlo has grown into one of world motor sport’s biggest and most recognisable events, but the challenge of getting through the French Alps faster than anybody in the hope of celebrating victory on the streets of the principality remains largely the same.
Rally Monte-Carlo’s history as part of the FIA World Rally Championship began with the inception of the Championship in 1973 – the Monte was the first ever WRC round, won by Jean-Claude Andruet / ‘Biche’ in an Alpine-Renault A110. In the following 53 years, Rallye Monte-Carlo has been a fixture on the WRC calendar for all but five years. Lancia remains the most successful manufacturer with 11 victories. One short of the Italian manufacturer, Sébastien Ogier is the driver with the most wins on 10 (nine in the WRC).
“Rallye Monte-Carlo is one of the most historic events on the FIA World Rally Championship calendar, with a heritage dating back to 1911. Its iconic mixed-surface stages continue to provide one of the most demanding challenges for crews anywhere in the sport. “The event also marks the start of the 2026 FIA WRC season and carries added significance this year with the return of Lancia as a full-time manufacturer for the first time since 1991. We will also see the arrival of two exciting young talents, with Oliver Solberg and Jon Armstrong stepping up to full-time seats in the championship. I look forward to following their progress closely over the season.” Malcolm Wilson, FIA Deputy President for Sport.
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