Before the event, Toyota driver Evans downplayed his Sweden chances given the disadvantage of starting second on the road.
However he finished the rally in second, 29.6s behind winner Hyundai’s Esapekka Lappi.
While not a fan of the 2024 points system, the Welshman benefitted from the new rules.
Evans survived a wild 360-degree spin on Friday to claim 13 points for finishing Saturday in third overall. He then pushed hard on the final day to top the Super Sunday classification to bag seven points, before securing four points from the rally-ending Power Stage.
Evans also benefitted from team-mates Kalle Rovanpera and Takamoto Katsuta, and Hyundai title rival Ott Tanak crashing out of the event across Friday and Saturday.
As a result, Evans’ total of 24 points was more than any other driver from the event, outscoring even rally winner Lappi by five points.
“It has been a really up and down weekend, obviously it was very difficult conditions on Friday especially to be early on the road,” said Evans.
“I think luckily for us in a way there was a lot of casualties on Friday and that opened up the opportunity to climb up the leaderboard.
Source: Autosport