Can the world champions be stopped in Portugal?

It’s a SPIN of two halves this week, with David Evans catching up with Colin Clark post-Finke in Australia, and Brenten Kelly in America following the latest ARA action at Southern Ohio Forest Rally. Or that was the plan. Then World Motor Sport Council made its announcements in Uzbekistan and, predictably, there was lots to talk about. Even though there were no changes to the technical regulations, the debate raged for quite some time. Now, the talk is of what comes next. If you’re a technically minded person within the FIA or the teams, the 2027 homologation cycle is almost upon us and rules have to be written fairly sharpish. Colin Clark reckons these could be the most important rules the governing body has ever written. What do you think? Join the chat in the comments.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Following last weekend’s Rally Italy Sardinia, Hyundai is 13 points clear of Toyota in the World Rally Championship’s manufacturers’ standings, and Thierry Neuville and Ott Tänak are sitting first and second in the drivers’ points. So is Toyota in crisis? That’s a question we ask on this week’s edition of SPIN, The Rally Pod. Host David Evans is joined by George Donaldson, Brenten Kelly and Jon Scoltock to dissect Sardinia’s major talking points. Is Toyota’s use of its part-time drivers not helping Elfyn Evans’ title chances? Did Neuville get it wrong by pushing too hard on Saturday? And what about the ‘sprint’ format of the event: did it work? We also look ahead to the American Rally Association’s latest round this weekend, the Southern Ohio Forest Rally.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A dramatically reduced number of stages means a very different looking Rally Sardinia. In this episode of SPIN, the rally pod, Colin Clark, David Evans, Jon Scoltock and George Donaldson discuss whether Thierry Neuville's Friday disadvantage could be nullified, if the new route offers value for fans, and what the WRC can do to increase its reach.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Oregon Trail Rally threw plenty of curveballs. The headline was both Subaru factory cars retiring within a mile of one another and opening the door for its 12-rally winning streak to be broken. But it was about more than Subaru’s unexpected disaster. An ARA cameo might become something more after Ricardo Cordero got to taste the winner’s champagne – albeit at the expense of a potential first win for Sam Albert’s Ferrari-powered Subaru. And then there’s the story of how Sean Edwards went to extreme lengths to keep his Volvo in the race. Brenten Kelly, David Evans and Alasdair Lindsay are joined by Edwards in this week’s SPIN, The Rally Pod to talk everything Oregon Trail.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A dramatic Rally Portugal brought plenty of talking points to the World Rally Championship last weekend. While Toyota’s Sébastien Ogier secured his second consecutive WRC victory with a masterclass performance, Hyundai driver Thierry Neuville significantly extended his lead atop the drivers’ championship standings. Titles are won by maximizing your points on events where winning isn’t possible, and Neuville appears to have mastered that approach. Was it a champions’ drive that we witnessed last weekend? Our experts have their say on this week’s edition of SPIN, The Rally Pod, as Colin Clark and Jon Scoltock are joined by ex-driver Simon Hughes to discuss the action. A deflated Elfyn Evans and his unflappable co-driver Scott Martin, the rise of Adrien Fourmaux into a leading contender, and Portuguese ice cream are just a few more of the topics the intrepid trio chew over. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Kalle Rovanperä and Sébastien Ogier will go head-to-head for the first time in 2024 at Rally Portugal – so are they favorites to win? Or can the current WRC title contenders, Thierry Neuville and Elfyn Evans, do something to stop them? Alasdair Lindsay, David Evans and George Donaldson go in-depth on what's to come from Rally Portugal.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Unique cars, arch-rivals helping one another, Olympus Rally had it all. Nate Tennis, Jack Harrison and Brenten Kelly talk through the action – plus historic rally cars and how DirtFish helped one competitor iron out a haunting mistake.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Croatia Rally’s ‘Super Sunday’ proved to be particularly dramatic as mistakes by Thierry Neuville and Elfyn Evans on the same stage proved costly on the latest round of the World Rally Championship. But just how did those errors occur? Were Neuville and Evans unlucky or could they consider themselves fortunate to be able to continue and limit their time loss? Ott Tänak too had his fair show of moments on the treacherous SS18, while Adrien Fourmaux lost more time than anyone – but bounced back to win the powerstage. George Donaldson and David Evans join host Alasdair Lindsay for the latest edition of SPIN, The Rally Pod, where George provides expert analysis on the moments in question. Rally winner Sébastien Ogier’s scathing indictment of the 2024 points system provides another talking point, while there is also discussion of Croatia’s chances of appearing on the 2025 calendar and the latest driver set to compete aboard Rally1 machinery.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week is the biggest event of the American Rally Association season: the Olympus Rally. But what’s the big deal? Why should you be following? A trio of DirtFish pros have the answers: Brenten Kelly, Nate Tennis and Jack Harrison. Sam Albert’s Ferrari-swapped Subaru, the fearsome challenge of Nahwatzel, the exciting rally debut of DirtFish alumnus Casen Pedersen and more are the hot topics in a special Olympus edition of SPIN, The Rally Pod.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Thierry Neuville heads to this week’s Croatia Rally with a six-point lead in the World Rally Championship standings. He’s been at the top of the pile ever since the season kicked off in January - but he’s had to rely on some stunning ‘Super Sunday’ performances on the past two rounds. Is the Hyundai driver building a sustained title bid? Or can Elfyn Evans find that elusive sweet spot with his Toyota GR Yaris and strike a momentum-swinging blow on a rally he won last year? With pressure building on Ott Tänak to produce a strong result, Adrien Fourmaux seeking a third consecutive podium, and returns for eight-time world champion Sébastien Ogier and Andreas Mikkelsen, there's plenty of WRC talking points for Colin Clark and David Evans on this week’s SPIN, The Rally Pod. The pair also look back on a fantastic Otago Rally in New Zealand and ponder the state of play with the WRC calendar.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.