After being kicked out of the WRC for cheating, and then coming back to win the championship in 1999, it’s safe to say that Toyota has had an interesting history with the World Rally Championship. Whatever you think of the team, their white and green Castrol livery is still one of the most iconic examples in all of motorsports.

Toyota representatives were spotted attending a rally event in Portugal, sparking rumors of a comeback for the Japanese automaker, but rally insiders were quick to quash these rumors.

Speaking to MaxRally, Malcolm Wilson of the Ford factory team said that there was nothing to substantiate rumors of a return for Toyota. “I spoke with them and they made it clear they are not just looking at rallying but all disciplines. It was purely a fact-finding mission from my understanding but it’s good to see they are showing an interest and even considering the WRC as an option.”

Toyota has won 43 rallies and 3 world championships, with famous drivers like Carlos Sainz and Didier Auriol behind the wheel.

[Source: MaxRally]

After crisscrossing Europe, flying over the Atlantic and racing from Boston to Quebec, the Gumball 3000 Rally made its way to Toronto yesterday, stopping mid-way for a pit-stop at Shannonville Motorsports Park. AutoGuide just so happened to drop in on this venue – which was far less glamorous than the 5-star accommodations, private parties and exotic cars that make up the rest of the Gumball event.

The stop-off was hosted by the Castrol Drift Mania Canadian Championships - a local drift series – which put on a demonstration for the assembled crowds of onlookers, media and the Gumballers themselves. Referred to by one driver as “crazy donuts” the drift cars took to a skid pad – one driver even using his right-and drive Toyota Soarer street car because his drift car was out of commission. Most of the drift cars were actually right-hand driver models imported from Japan – with the notable exception of one Pontiac GTO (which so happens to be the same car that Rhys Millen used to race in the Formula Drift series).

As for the Gumballers – many of them driving right-hand drive models (from the U.K.) as well – some took to the race track while others just basked in the glow of camera flashes. Of note were numerous SLRs and Bentleys, as well as a Bugatti Veyron, a matte-black Ferari F430 Spider and one of our faves, a Lamborghini LP670-4 SV – all the way from Monaco.

Other bizarre models included a Volvo wagon and a tubbed Dodge Challenger with massive 24-inch wheels and tires measuring 405 across.

Few Gumballers actually took to the track (as expected), although we did run across one Norwegian Gumballer who knew how to handle a car, burning up the tires (and the brakes) on his rented E350 4MATIC Mercedes and making an Aston Martin DB9 look slow.

The Ontario Provincial Police were in full effect and had significant warning that the Gumballers were coming and headed to Toronto before leaving for New York City today. One Gumballer who definitely won’t be driving across the finish line had his license suspended and his Dodge Charger impounded by the police for ‘stunt drving.’

Check out our gallery of Gumball 3000 cars below, as well as a full gallery of the awesomely ghetto cars of the Castrol DMCC.

GALLERY: Gumball 3000 Pit Stop at Shannonville Motorsports Park

GALLERY: Castrol Drift Mania Canadian Championships Demo Cars