Toyota gives protege Katsuta World Rally Championship debut

The Japanese driver will also contest Rally Spain in the Toyota in October, and a run on Rally Japan - the November event that will be the nation's dress rehearsal for its full WRC round next year - has also been mooted.

There is speculation that programme could be a precursor to Katsuta contesting all 14 rounds in a Yaris WRC next season.

The 26-year-old has spent 2019 so far in a Markko Martin Motorsport-run Ford Fiesta R5 car, which he will stay in for Rally Finland and Rally GB. He will miss Rally Turkey and was never scheduled to take part in Australia.

Katsuta has improved greatly this season and only a fire aboard his Fiesta denied him back-to-back WRC 2 wins in Sardinia. He has also won both the Finnish national rounds he has started in a Yaris WRC.

Toyota Motor Corporation president Akio Toyoda was watching Katsuta in Italy and was impressed with what he saw.

"I'm looking forward to seeing Takamoto standing on the podium with the Yaris WRC in the future," said Toyoda.

"We need to convert the experience from this rally into strength for the days to come."

Toyota team principal Tommi Makinen said Katsuta had earned his WRC chances with his progress in the first part of 2019.

"Takamoto has made some big steps already this year," said Makinen.

"In his WRC2 programme, he has shown very good progress with his driving and his consistency.

"He also handled his first rallies in the Yaris WRC in the Finnish championship very well.

"Because of this, we are sure that he is ready to make the next step up already.

"We waited to finalise his programme for the end of the season, to see how he was progressing, and it is great that we can already add these two events in a World Rally Car in the world championship.

"We know that these will be very challenging rallies - Takamoto has no experience of competing in Germany, and Spain is tough as it's a mixed-surface event.

"So we are not setting any targets in terms of results: the main priority will be for him to continue learning and to develop his driving."

Autosport understands Katsuta would drive a fourth car run in the same way Juho Hanninen's Yaris WRC was run in Sardinia, under the Tommi Makinen Racing banner alongside the three Toyota Gazoo Racing entries.

• From the archive
  
• Feb 2018 - The F3 convert carrying Japan's WRC hopes
  

Katsuta was a single-seater racer up to 2014, winning races in Japanese Formula 3, before switching to rallying.

"Since I switched to rallying four years ago, I have worked hard to be World Rally champion in the future," he said.

"There have been many good moments, but also frustrating ones. Now, I can take a big step forward with support from many people around me.

"However, I have not yet reached my end goal: I'm just standing on the startline."