FINLAND (AFP) — Jari-Matti Latvala, the 38-year-old boss of the Toyota team, has picked himself to drive his home rally in Finland for his first start since 2020.
He replaces eight-time world champion, Sebastien Ogier, who, at 39, is racing part-time for Toyota this season and has opted to skip the Finnish leg of the World Rally Championship from 3 to 6 August.
It will be the 210th rally for Latvala, who holds the record for most starts in the WRC.
Latvala said he asked Akio “Morizo” Toyoda, the Toyota chairman, for a chance to drive a hybrid Rally1 car.
“I said that I had the dream to experience a Rally1 car, because over the last 20 years, I have experienced all the World Rally Cars and all the evolutions of these cars, but I have no experience of Rally1, and I would like to experience it before I am 40 years old,” Latvala said in a video posted by Toyota.
“Morizo said: ‘Yes, we need to do it, let’s do it!'” said, Latvala. “Then, for this season, we have had this fourth car available.”
Latvala the championship runner-up, behind Ogier, in 2010, 2014, and 2015, has won three times in the premier class in Finland.
The rally follows the next round of the WRC in Estonia in July.
Latvala will team up with Welshman Elfyn Evans, Japan’s Takamoto Katsuta, and reigning champion and compatriot Kalle Rovenpera.
“My target is to have a smile after every stage,” Latvala said.
