The eight-time and outgoing world champion sealed his first WRC victory since securing the 2021 title at Rally Monza last November with a faultless drive on Spain’s asphalt roads.
After securing the rally lead last Friday, the 38-year-old reeled off eight stage wins to take a relatively comfortable victory by 16.4s from Hyundai’s Thierry Neuville, while new world champion Rovanpera was third, 34.5s adrift.
The victory was Ogier’s first since scaling down his WRC commitments to a partial season this year and a maiden success alongside new co-driver Benjamin Veillas. The success also helped secure Toyota its sixth WRC manufacturers’ crown.
Ogier had come close to securing a win prior to his triumph in Spain when a penultimate stage puncture at Monte Carlo in January robbed him of a likely win.
Punctures in Portugal and Kenya also saw opportunities evaporate, before finishing second to Rovanpera in New Zealand earlier this month.
Asked if he felt he had a proven a point by beating the dominant world champion Rovanpera in a fair fight, he said: “No, there is nothing to prove.
“I think Kalle is a deserving champion this year and there is nothing to say about that.
“Of course it is still nice to come here and show the speed we can still have, so I am proud of that.
“I enjoy this kind of competition against Kalle, Thierry or Ott [Tanak]. It was intense this weekend and we had to push to get the win, so it tastes better when you get it that way.
“Of course it is always nice [to win], obviously it has been a little while but I had only done four rallies up to this one this year.
“I was missing a little bit of luck on my side but finally we had a weekend where everything worked for us.
“The feeling in the Yaris was just amazing and I could feel at one and do what I want with the car this weekend.
“It was a perfect weekend, the car was great and I enjoyed the stages and it is nice to clinch the manufacturers’ title in style for Toyota. The team has done an amazing job through the whole year and it is more than deserved for them.”
Ogier’s 55th career victory extended the Frenchman’s record of scoring at least one WRC win every season across a 10 year period, stretching back to 2013.
The feat has only been achieved by three others drivers in WRC history including Ogier’s Toyota boss Jari-Matti Latvala, nine-time world champion Sebastien Loeb and 1995 world champion Colin McRae.
“It is good [to know],” added Ogier when the statistic was brought to his attention.
“Statistics are always nice to read, obviously I am not driving for that, but more importantly for me I still enjoy what I do and I have the opportunity to still be competitive with a great team around me for some rallies. I take the maximum pleasure from that.”
Ogier’s 2023 WRC future is yet to be officially announced, although it is expected that he will remain in a part-time role with Toyota next year, and could contest as many as six rallies.
