Subaru WRX claims Australian rally victory

Australian motorsport legend Toby Price has piloted a near-stock Subaru WRX to victory at the 2026 Sunraysia Safari Rally, coming out on top over a full field of purpose-built rally cars and motorcycles.

Held across four days last week, this year's Sunraysia Safari spanned more than 1000km throughout remote New South Wales over nine stages comprising dry, dusty conditions, tight rutted sections, deep sand, and mud – with speeds reaching as high as 195km/h.

The WRX, fielded by Western Australian-based team Maximum Motorsport, completed the event in 10 hours, 58 minutes and 36 seconds, with Price at the helm alongside co-driver Ben Searcy, winning by one minute and 32 seconds.

"This is a really special win," Price said in a statement. "The Sunraysia Safari is a tough event that pushes both driver and car to the absolute limit.

"We faced a huge variety of conditions across the four days which made it tricky, but the WRX never missed a beat. The team prepared an outstanding package and it's awesome to reward that effort with a win."

Price, known for his success on bikes and in cars at high-profile off-road events such as the Dakar Rally and Finke Desert Race, has more recently competed in the Australian Rally Championship driving the same WRX within the production-based 'WRX Challenge' class.

In preparation for the Sunraysia Safari, the Subaru underwent a handful of minor modifications. Most notable are its rally suspension and increased ride height, complemented by chunky all-terrain tyres on unique alloy wheels.

It also has a modified exhaust, rally-spec intake snorkel, a roll cage, racing bucket seats, and a protective front mesh plate. An STI-style rear wing was also fitted to complete the 'rally' look.

The rest of the car is unchanged, including the 2.4-litre four-cylinder turbo boxer engine, six-speed manual transmission, brakes, steering, and body. Even Subaru's portrait-style touchscreen infotainment system is still functional.

Despite the win, the car wasn't faultless. This year's rally had much taller grass than previous iterations, and roughly halfway through the event the WRX crew was forced to pull over mid-stage to remove grass from the front bumper and grille to keep it from overheating.

It also experienced minor power steering foibles, though nothing completely halted the crew's progress. Price's teammate, however, would have a harder time.

The WRX was one of two Subarus competing. The other was the Maximum Motorsport Crosstrek (formerly XV) with an engine and driveline conversion from a third-generation Impreza WRX STI, driven by team principal Dean Herridge alongside co-driver Sam Hill, who won last year's event.

On the event's first stage, the Crosstrek struck an unseen rock that punched a hole through its metal underbody bash plate. The car sustained no mechanical damage, and the hole was later patched.

On the second day, the car collided with a bird at 160km/h, shattering its windscreen. It was subsequently replaced, but later broken again when the car hit a low-hanging tree branch. The team's mechanics then undertook an overnight trip to Adelaide to secure a second windscreen.

Herridge and Hill went on to complete the rally successfully, finishing runners-up to Price and Searcy for a Subaru one-two after a lengthy two-way battle for first place throughout the event.

"To get a one-two for the team is a fantastic result and I'm absolutely delighted for everyone involved," Herridge said in a statement.

"The gap back to third was massive, which is a huge credit to the team, the cars and Subaru, and everyone who put the effort in to get us here."

Of course, the Sunraysia Safari operates on a much smaller scale than the World Rally Championship (WRC), where Subaru forged its motorsport pedigree with several championship victories. The last time the Japanese brand won a WRC event was in 2005, and it withdrew from the sport at the end of 2008.

It has since found success in the Australian Rally Championship, thanks most recently to Aussie rally driver Molly Taylor, who drove a WRX STI to championship victory in 2016.

Subaru wasn't the only brand directly involved in this year's Sunraysia rally. Mazda Australia also entered a standard BT-50 decked out with genuine accessories, but it was forced to withdraw after the ute was damaged in an on-road incident while in transit between stages.

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