There have been a lot of talks about the upcoming revival of the Celica, but perhaps it’s only now that we’re getting real, concrete updates.
Toyota has officially revealed its plans for the World Rally Championship (WRC) in 2027. After dominating the championship for the past six years, the carmaker has confirmed that it will be fielding two separate cars across two teams next season. Gazoo Racing Toyota will be campaigning with the 2027 GR Yaris Rally1, while Toyota Racing will be competing with the new GR Celica Rally1.
Details are still scarce, but the WRC has confirmed that both the new Celica and Yaris rally cars are being developed “in parallel” in Jyväskylä, Finland—the home of the Toyota Gazoo Racing-World Rally Team.
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While we did get to get a glimpse of the GR Celica Rally1 via an experience with the mid-engined Yaris Prototype—we still have no idea what the new GR Celica Rally1 will be like. As we inch closer to the next WRC season, we can expect more updates then.
Frankly, some of us were a bit skeptical about the Celica’s comeback at first. We had to hear (or read) the confirmation straight from Toyota itself, not just through secondhand quotes from executives. Now, we finally have it, and we have plenty of reasons to be excited. If the GR Yaris, GR Corolla, and GR GT—or even just Toyota’s WRC success—are anything to go by, then we should be in for another hit.
Thoughts, readers? Are you excited for the new Celica?
