The 93rd Monte-Carlo Rally got underway on Thursday from Casino Square, a perfect setting in the heart of the Principality, for 68 drivers and crews, including four world champions (Thierry Neuville, Sébastien Ogier, Kalle Rovanperä and Ott Tänak), who immediately set off on a long road liaison to the first three special stages, scheduled for the evening between Alpes de Haute-Provence and Hautes-Alpes.

“It’s never easy to start a rally season, especially in Monte Carlo, where nothing is ever the same from one year to the next, even in the special stages we know so well. We will need to avoid all the traps, right to the end, as usual”, said Sébastien Ogier, the eight-time world rally champion and nine-time Monte-Carlo winner (8 times in the WRC, once in the IRC), on the starting podium. His Toyota Yaris, still in a superb matte-black livery, bears his lucky number, 17 (he was born in Gap on December 17, 1983). The Hautes-Alpes driver is no longer aiming for the world title, but only a few rounds each year, just for fun. “I want to spend time with my family, so I mainly look at school vacation dates before drawing up my rally calendar, in agreement with my team,” Ogier added. For the last 12 years, he has always finished 1st or 2nd in the Principality!

Lighter, more agile cars

As of every year, Automobile Club de Monaco (ACM) had perfectly organized this top-of-the-range starting ceremony, attended on site by a number of VIPs including Thierry Boutsen, the former Formula 1 driver, and Michèle Mouton, now retired after ten years’ service as head of safety for the World Rally Championship. They watched the parade of 68 superb rally cars, including those in the queen category (Rally1) which, as of this year, are no longer equipped with a hybrid propulsion system.

“The cars are lighter, so they’re more agile, and there are also new tires (Korean tires, supplied by Hankook), so there’s a lot that’s new. I’ve got a new car, I’m in a new team. It’s going to be a long rally, and a long season, so we’ll have to see what the others’ pace is at first…” said Adrien Fourmaux, the new Hyundai driver, before stepping onto the starting ramp. The Monegasque flag was waved by various Monegasque personalities, in front of the 68 competitors. These included five official Gazoo Racing Toyota Yaris, three Hyundai i20Ns entered by Hyundai Motorsport, and two Ford Puma entered by Malcolm Wilson’s English M-Sport team. There will also be 24 cars in the WRC2 category, where the battle will be fierce between a number of young, sharp-toothed drivers.

Three nightly stages as a spicy starter

With the final destination being the service park in Gap, the prefecture of the Hautes-Alpes, everyone set off on a long liaison to the first three special stages of this 2025 edition, covering a total of 54.16 km of timed sections. First to come was SS1 between Digne-les-Bains and Chaudon-Norante (19.01 km). Then SS2 between Faucon-du-Caire and Bréziers (21.18 km), the longest stage on this eagerly-awaited first evening. And SS3, between Avançon and Notre-Dame-du-Laus (13.97 km), where drivers have a good chance of finding patches of snow or black ice, in the middle of the night (first car to set off at 9 pm).

It will be a very short night in Gap, before a long Friday, with two loops of three special stages (SS4 to SS6, then SS7 to SS9, totalling 107 km of timed sections). A full day of fierce battling at all levels of the overall standings. The 93rd Monte-Carlo Rally is off to a good start. Suspense guaranteed, right up to the grand finale on Sunday at midday, on Col de Turini!

Relive the ceremony in full