I remember this was a problem on Horizon 1, but it seems almost more prevalent now. I had a race I started where after the cinematic the opponent had taken a right while I was forced to watch the cinematic and drove past the turn off for the route putting me at an immediate disadvantage.
What do you mean the challenge drivatar? Do you mean in the head-to-head races? I’ve done a couple but don’t recall if this happened or not. With so much more variety and options to reach the finish line, a slight advantage shouldn’t be an issue. Just remember that you do start driving and it’s not a race with a start line and all.