After Hyundai dominating earlier on in the event, round 11 of the 2024 WRC season, Toyota came to the fore Saturday and Sunday, with Kalle Rovanperä (2:58:59.8) winning over Elfyn Evans.

Tänak was 43.9 seconds behind the winner.

Tänak, who had won the inaugural Rally Chile in his world championship-winning year, 2019, and again the next time it was held in 2022, was initially given the lead at the end of the first day's stages, complicated by a canceled first stage.

However, after a recalibration of results in the light of the canceled stage – Tänak was one of a handful of drivers to have gone out before spectator safety issues prompted organizers to wrap it up – the Estonian was bumped down to position two in favor of Welshman Elfyn Evans (Toyota).

The race was third from last in the 2024 season and, while he did not make it to the podium, Tänak's teammate at Hyundai Thierry Neuville was one of the weekend's winners as his fifth place finish, and fourth in the power stage, was enough to maintain his clear lead at the top of the table, with two races to go.

Tänak was more resigned after his result despite finishing higher than Neuville, and said: "Overall, it's hard to take much positive from this weekend."

"I really enjoy roads like this, but there wasn't much left for me," he added.

After finishing first on Friday, on Saturday, Tänak had to acknowledge the superiority of Finn Kalle Rovanperä, who took the lead ahead of Evans and Tänak, thus claiming the first victory points under the new scoring system introduced for the 2024 season.

Two-time and reigning WRC champion Rovanperä is not in the hunt for the title this year, as he has taken a semi-sabbatical and has only raced in some events.

On the final day, Sunday, it was the turn of eight-time world champion Sébastien Ogier to dominate for Toyota, having retired on Saturday after hitting a rock.

The Frenchman won all four stages, clocking a maximum of 12 points from Sunday.

Tänak was the fourth-fastest on Sunday, although in the end, he lost to Evans by only two seconds. On the power stage, the Estonian posted the third-fastest time.

Tänak at least closed the gap a little on Neuville, the latter looking for his maiden title, but only by five points – and the Belgian is still 29 points ahead of Tänak (207 points versus 178).

A maximum of 30 points can be earned from one event, so there are still 60 points up for grabs in the last two races, in Austria/Germany (central European rally) later on in October, and then in Japan for the season finale in late November.

Ogier is not as close to Tänak as he was before Chile, and now has 166 points, five points ahead of teammate Evans, another driver still looking for that elusive first title. France's Adrien Fourmaux is fifth with 140 points, the highest-placing M-Sport Ford driver.

In the team standings, Toyota reduced the gap between it and Hyundai to 17 points: Hyundai currently has 482, Toyota 465, and M-Sport Ford 245 points.

The Central European Rally takes place October 17-20.

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