Overdrive Racing has named Yves Matton as team manager for the 2026 and 2027 World Rally-Raid Championships. As part of his new duties, he will oversee the Hiluxes of Overdrive’s technical partner Toyota Gazoo Racing.

Matton was the head of Citroën’s racing division, which entailed leading the WRC and WTCC programs, from 2012 to 2017. In 2018, he was hired by the FIA as the rally and rally raid director.

In his three years with the FIA, Matton saw the switch to hybrids and overhauling the rally pyramid system. On the rally raid side, he was instrumental in coordinating the creation of the W2RC, whose inaugural season took place in 2022. At the start of 2026, Matton was in Saudi Arabia to follow the W2RC-opening Dakar Rally.

“With Toyota Gazoo Racing’s W2RC program managed by Overdrive Racing, it is essential to have an optimal management structure,” Overdrive principal Jean-Marc Fortin explained. “Yves Matton will be able to share his extensive experience in team management, as well as the skills he has acquired over many years in both rallying and rally raid, particularly during his time as FIA Rally Director.

“We are also proud to welcome him to our team and further strengthen the Belgian identity of our organization, which also includes Christian Loriaux at the head of its technical department.”

After leaving the FIA, Matton shifted his focus on his company MY Racing. The business also includes MY Vintage, which prepares cars for classic rallies, and MY Gallery, a showroom for restoring such vehicles. WRC co-driver Louis Louka is an ambassador and employee at the latter.

“I am delighted to take on this new challenge with a major manufacturer that has a very strong track record in various disciplines,” said Matton. “After the WRC and WTCC, I will have the opportunity to lead a professional team in a third World Championship, which will not be a complete discovery for me since rally raid was obviously part of my responsibilities when I held the position of rally director at the FIA. Our objective is very clear: to enable Toyota to retain its manufacturers’ title in W2RC.”

Matton joins Toyota during what is frankly a growing year. 2026 is the first season with the new Toyota Hilux built by Overdrive, and Fortin had been frank about this being a learning season before stepping up in 2027 or 2028. The team struggled at Dakar with reliability issues. Loriaux, like Matton, has extensive WRC experience as the former program manager for 2024 drivers’ champion Hyundai.

Featured image credit: Jaanus Ree / Red Bull Content Pool