Eight-time World Rally champion Sebastien Ogier took the lead of the Rally Islas Canarias on Friday morning after heading a Toyota one-two-three-four-five through the opening loop of the Gran Canaria tarmac round, only for the next stage of the day to be cancelled outright after more than 100 spectator vehicles were found parked illegally in a protected area.
The Frenchman, back in the Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 after a part-time start to 2026, was just 0.8 seconds faster than overnight leader Takamoto Katsuta through SS2 Tejeda – San Mateo 1's opening pass. With Sami Pajari a further 0.1 seconds back, Oliver Solberg fourth and Elfyn Evans fifth, Toyota Gazoo Racing locked out the top five positions in only the second timed stage of the rally.
"I am satisfied. I expected a very competitive stage. I had good feelings with the car and the competition with my teammates is intense," Ogier said after taking the lead.
Katsuta, who has been drawing coaching input from double world champion Kalle Rovanpera through the weekend, retained second overall and closed the morning loop 0.8 seconds back from Ogier. Twenty-four-year-old Pajari showed the kind of raw pace that has already had Toyota brass working on a permanent full-season seat.
Dani Sordo was the best of the Hyundai challenge in sixth, already 7.6 seconds adrift of Ogier after just two stages. Thierry Neuville, a former world champion, was publicly struggling for confidence with his i20 N Rally1.
"I didn't sleep very well. I was so nervous about how I would drive the car," Neuville admitted after his stage.
"It was a really nice stage and I enjoyed it a lot. I think we can improve the car," he said.
The controversy came when the FIA's Clerk of the Course cancelled SS3 — the 18.62-kilometre repeat pass of Tejeda – San Mateo — after marshals and the event's safety car reported more than 100 spectator cars parked inside a designated protected natural area along the stage route. A tow-truck operation to clear the vehicles made running the stage impossible.
"The situation forced the Race Director to cancel the stage to allow for the removal of vehicles from the area," the FIA said in an official statement.
The decision cost drivers the third stage of a 14-stage rally and was immediately criticised on the service park as a waste of Thursday's setup work. But WRC officials insisted that an unauthorised gathering of cars inside a protected-area boundary left no alternative. The Canaries, making their return to the WRC calendar as a full-status round after years of lobbying, are a popular tourist destination and the event has drawn unprecedented roadside crowds across its four-day format.
For Ogier, the early lead offers a chance to extend his win tally in a year he is only racing part-time. For Toyota, it is another demonstration of how deep the team's bench has become — five cars, five possible winners, and a stage win shared across three different drivers before lunchtime on Friday.
For the organisers, the priority is simpler: reopen SS3 for its afternoon repeat, and prevent the story of one of the WRC's most celebrated new rounds being written as a spectator-management failure rather than a rally.
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*Originally published on [Motorsports Global](https://motorsports.global/article/ogier-wrc-canary-islands-lead-ss3-cancelled-illegal-parking-2026). Visit for full coverage.*
