Round two of the 2026 FIA World Rally Championship delivered snow, ice and a clear signal in the title fight, with Elfyn Evans taking victory at Rally Sweden to move to the top of the standings.
Held in the frozen forests around Umeå from 12 to 15 February, Rally Sweden remains the only full snow and ice event on the WRC calendar. Crews tackled 18 special stages across roughly 300 kilometres of winter roads, with Rally1 cars approaching 200 km/h on studded tyres while engines pushed close to 8,500 rpm. In these conditions, tyre performance is decisive.
Hankook, the exclusive tyre supplier to the WRC, equipped the field with its purpose-built Winter i Pike SR10W. Designed specifically for ice rally competition, the tyre features specialised stud pins for maximum bite on frozen surfaces, strong traction under acceleration and consistent braking stability. Its asymmetric tread pattern supports precise handling at high speed, critical when margins are measured in seconds across four days of competition.
Evans mastered the tyre management challenge across the event, leading for the majority of the rally and finishing 14.3 seconds ahead of Toyota team-mate Takamoto Katsuta. Finland’s Sami Pajari completed a Toyota Gazoo Racing podium lockout, underlining both team performance and tyre consistency across varying grip levels. Including nine Sunday bonus points, Evans now leads the championship by 13 points.
“Pretty chuffed and relieved now,” Evans said after the finish. “It was difficult with all the tyre management but happy with the time in the end and happy with this result. A Toyota one two three four feels amazing.”
Championship leader coming into the weekend, Oliver Solberg had opened strongly after his historic Rallye Monte Carlo win but ultimately finished fourth on home soil. The 24 year old had set the pace on Thursday’s opening stage before losing time on Friday. Despite the setback, he remains firmly in the early title battle.
Further down the order, Jon Armstrong continued an encouraging debut Rally1 season with eighth place, just ahead of fellow Irishman Josh McErlean in the M Sport Ford.
For Hankook Motorsport, Rally Sweden once again demonstrated the importance of stable, repeatable performance in extreme sub zero conditions. Having first supplied the championship in 2025, Hankook continues to channel insights from more than 70 global motorsport series into product development, strengthening its ultra high performance portfolio through real world competition data.
The championship now shifts dramatically in character, moving from Scandinavia’s ice to the rough terrain of Kenya for Safari Rally from 12 to 15 March. After proving itself in snow and ice, Hankook prepares for another test at the opposite end of the performance spectrum, as the 2026 WRC season gathers momentum.