The 2006 event was based in the town of Kita Aikoku near Obihiro in Japan and was contested over twenty seven special stages, covering a total competitive distance of 345.72km (214.82 miles).

Loeb and co-driver Daniel Elena won the rally, their first win since the 2006 Rallye Deutschland and their seventh of the season.

Despite being fastest on the end-of-day super special stages, Loeb would trail his rival by just over ten seconds at the end of the day.

Mikko Hirvonen would find himself in a comfortable third, as Atkinson struggled with mechanical issues throughout the day, being awarded a fifty second time penalty after leaving the service area later than scheduled.

[10] Companc would end the rally on the penultimate stage after crashing, while Sordo lost time negotiating the accident site, but was later excluded for not wearing seatbelts.