The 2026 FIA World Rally Championship season began with Rallye Monte-Carlo, held across Monaco and France from 22 to 25 January. For New Zealand rally followers, Monte-Carlo remains one of the clearest tests of tyre performance due to constant surface changes and long stages where conditions shift corner by corner.
Snow, ice, wet asphalt, and dry tarmac intersected repeatedly across the Alpine stages. These conditions placed tyre choice and timing at the centre of competition, with crews required to commit early to strategies that lasted across entire loops.
The rally ran over 17 special stages covering 339 kilometres. Drivers faced variable grip at speed, particularly on shaded mountain roads where ice lingered while lower sections dried. Consistency across these transitions played a major role in stage times and overall classification.
Hankook supported the event as the exclusive rally tyre supplier, providing the Ventus Z215 tarmac rally tyre and the Winter icept SR20 snow rally tyre. The Ventus Z215 delivered stable steering response and braking on dry and damp asphalt, while the Winter icept SR20 maintained traction on snow and ice sections common to Monte-Carlo. Together, these tyres supported competitive parity across the field despite the changing conditions.
Victory went to Oliver Solberg and co-driver Elliott Edmondson driving for Toyota Gazoo Racing. Solberg became the youngest winner of Rallye Monte-Carlo in the 21st century, surpassing a record set by Björn Waldegård in 1970. Toyota secured all podium positions, underlining early-season performance and reliability.
Hankook has supplied rally tyres across all WRC classes since the 2025 season under a three-year agreement. Development included more than 2,000 kilometres of testing across eight countries, resulting in FIA-certified rally tyres built for high load, low temperature, and mixed-surface use.
The championship now moves to Rally Sweden from 12 to 15 February. Full snow and ice stages, studded tyres, and sub-zero temperatures shift the focus toward traction and durability, carrying momentum from Monte-Carlo into the next phase of the 2026 season.