January 2022 marked the start of a new regulatory chapter in the FIA World Rally Championship. The Rally1 hybrid rules replaced the Yaris WRC era, and Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT lined up at Monte Carlo with a car that blended a GR Yaris-based platform with a mandatory 100 kW hybrid power unit, producing a combined output of approximately 500 bhp. Car No. 69, crewed by Kalle Rovanperä and Jonne Halttunen, finished 4th overall — a composed debut result for a brand-new machine.
The Toyota GR Yaris Rally1: Hybrid WRC Engineering
Built to the 2022 FIA Rally1 technical regulations, the GR Yaris Rally1 sits on a GR Yaris-derived platform extensively reworked for homologation compliance. The 1.6-litre turbocharged inline-3 combustion engine is paired with a mandatory 100 kW hybrid unit, combining for roughly 500 bhp. The switch to hybrid-assisted powertrains in 2022 represented the most significant technical shift in the WRC's top class in a decade, and the GR Yaris was Toyota's answer to that challenge from round one.
Monte Carlo 2022: Rovanperä Opens a Championship Year
Rally Monte Carlo 2022, held in January, was Round 1 of the WRC season and the first competitive start for the GR Yaris Rally1. Rovanperä and Halttunen placed 4th overall — solid points on a technically demanding event that was ultimately won by Sébastien Loeb in an M-Sport Ford. What followed across the rest of 2022 confirmed the significance of that opening weekend: Rovanperä ended the season as WRC World Champion at 22 years old, the youngest in the championship's history. The No. 69 in Monte Carlo spec is therefore the earliest dateable configuration of a title-winning campaign.
IXO Models: Die-Cast at 1:43
This 1:43 scale model is produced in die-cast metal by IXO Models, one of the most prolific manufacturers working in the 1:43 format. The replica captures the standard Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT 2022 livery: predominantly white with red and black corporate graphics, carrying sponsor branding including Denso and BF Goodrich. Car number 69 is correctly represented, along with the driver pairing of Rovanperä and Halttunen as raced at Monte Carlo. Die-cast construction at this scale delivers faithful exterior proportions in a compact, display-ready format.
In the Display Cabinet: Building the 2022 WRC Lineup
This model fits naturally into a 2022 WRC season collection or a Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT dedicated shelf. The most logical companions are the No. 1 GR Yaris Rally1 of Sébastien Ogier and the No. 33 of Elfyn Evans, both also entered at Rally Monte Carlo 2022, completing the full three-car Toyota factory lineup from that opening round. Collectors focused on Rovanperä's championship year will find the Monte Carlo entry the earliest reference point of his 2022 title run, distinguishable by its season-opening specification.
