"(Six times world champion Sebastien) Ogier has been my teammate for a long time. I always admire how he can be so fast and yet maintain his tires. Ogier is a master of preserving his tires on gravel. Ott Tänak has always been fast, which is something no one has contested. He has added wit and consistency to that speed lately to dominate the last few years," Evans told Vikerraadio in an interview.

Evans has not seen "Ott Tänak: The Movie" yet but plans to watch it over Christmas. "We both lost our team places in 2015 and it is somewhat ironic to be locked in a battle again. We both found the year 2015 difficult for different reasons," Evans added. "I grew up surrounded by rallying. The family had a car business. I was surrounded by cars all the time. I did not compete before I was 17 and even then had no idea it could ever become something more than a hobby."

Evans has come along by leaps and bounds in Toyota. "This leap is a combination of many things. I have become more confident over time and less concerned with what others are doing. It is the right path, Toyota is a brilliant team, the car is very fast and we are working on making it faster still. Confidence is very important for me," Evans said, adding that teams can learn a lot from each other these days. "There are fewer secrets. Every car has an onboard camera and we are learning a great deal from one another. Sebastien Loeb's driving style was perhaps the greatest influence for me growing up."

What does the future hold for Evans? I cannot tell you much about the future as I have not given it a lot of thought. We have been talking about hybrid cars in 2022. But I don't know today what that would mean. I am concentrating on this year when we have remarkably good cars the drivers find a joy to pilot. I hope the rally carousel will survive and remain important in the eyes of manufacturers."

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