Here's the thing about stepping away: sometimes it simply clears the noise. For Ott Tänak, a year away from the FIA World Rally Championship has done precisely that, returning him to the stages with a renewed appetite to fight for a second world title. The 2019 world champion is officially coming back to the series, and he is doing it by rejoining the Japanese marque for 2027.
That comeback forms part of a massive, expanded six-crew line-up for the manufacturer, split across two separate teams. The Estonian will pilot an all-new GR Yaris Rally1 under the GAZOO Racing Toyota banner. It marks his proper return to the championship following a departure from Hyundai Motorsport at the end of the 2025 campaign.
While he was technically away from the WRC calendar this year, the 39-year-old never really left the dirt. He spent his time working as a development driver, helping shape Toyota's brand-new 2027 GR Celica and GR Yaris machines. That hands-on seat time in development work ultimately convinced him to step back into the competitive frying pan with the very brand that guided him to rallying's ultimate prize back in 2019.
Reflecting on his time away, Tänak admitted the break offered a welcome pause while still keeping him behind the wheel. The sheer professionalism of the squad and the collaborative work on the new cars convinced him that their shared journey needed to continue on the stages. He also noted just how much the outfit has evolved since his first stint, transforming from a very young team into a deeply competitive establishment with real history behind it.
That internal competition is going to be fierce, too. Tänak steps into a garage boasting no less than three world champions, alongside defending champion Elfyn Evans and the returning two-time champion Kalle Rovanperä. Add in fellow team-mates Oliver Solberg, Sami Pajari, and Takamoto Katsuta—all of whom bring multiple WRC wins to the table—and the battle for supremacy within the camp promises to be absolute madness.
Tänak is under no illusions about the challenge ahead. The line-up has grown significantly, and every single one of those team-mates is fully capable of taking victories. When the stages go live, the margins are going to be razor-thin.
