Evans takes command at Rally Sweden as Sesks finds pace

Elfyn Evans surged to the front of the leaderboard during the opening stages of Saturday’s Rally Sweden, overtaking overnight leader Takamoto Katsuta. Despite describing his initial performance as imperfect, Evans managed to pull away from his Toyota teammate, establishing a 16.1-second advantage by the midday service interval. Katsuta struggled significantly with a lack of traction, failing to match the pace set by the Welshman across the morning tests.

Meanwhile, M-Sport Ford’s Mārtiņš Sesks delivered a standout performance, securing a stage victory on Sarsjöliden 1 as he recovered from a difficult Friday. Behind the lead battle, Oliver Solberg continued his climb through the standings, moving into fourth overall after setting the fastest time on the Kolksele test. Solberg is now chasing teammate Sami Pajari for the final spot on the podium.

Hyundai Motorsport faced a challenging morning, with Esapekka Lappi and Adrien Fourmaux unable to challenge the leaders. Lappi, currently in fifth, expressed concerns over his confidence levels following setup changes, while championship contender Thierry Neuville continued to use the event to test development configurations. In the WRC2 category, Roope Korhonen remains firmly in control.