RALLY FINLAND 2026: M-SPORT CARRIES FAST GRAVEL MOMENTUM INTO ROUND 10

Mārtiņš Sesks competing in the Ford Puma Rally1 on the high-speed Finnish stages.

M-SPORT RETURNS TO THE FINNISH FORESTS WITH MCRELEAN, SESKS, ARMSTRONG, JOHANSSON AND JÜRGENSON

M-Sport heads into Rally Finland 2026 from July 30 to August 2 aiming to carry its recent high-speed gravel pace from Rally Estonia into the tenth round of the FIA World Rally Championship.

Based in Jyväskylä, Rally Finland is one of the fastest events on the WRC calendar. The 75th running features 20 gravel stages covering 316.04 kilometres of competitive distance, with crests, jumps and sweeping bends demanding accuracy at high speed.

Key Points:

• Rally Finland 2026 is the tenth round of the FIA World Rally Championship.

• The event runs from July 30 to August 2.

• Rally Finland features 20 gravel stages and 316.04 kilometres of competitive distance.

• The rally is based in Jyväskylä.

• The 75th edition features a substantially revised route.

• Around two-thirds of the stages are new.

• The itinerary has been made more compact with shorter liaison sections.

• Several stages will run in the opposite direction to their usual format.

• Josh McErlean and Mārtiņš Sesks return in Ford Puma Rally1 machinery.

• Jon Armstrong makes his first Rally Finland appearance since 2016.

• Mille Johansson and Romet Jürgenson return in Ford Fiesta Rally2 cars.

• M-Sport enters Finland after showing promising pace at Rally Estonia.

M-SPORT LOOKS TO CARRY ESTONIA PACE INTO FINLAND

The short turnaround between Rally Estonia and Rally Finland gives M-Sport little time before another high-speed gravel challenge.

The Finnish event is known for its fast roads, crests, jumps and sweeping corners, leaving little room for error. This year’s 75th running also brings a significantly revised itinerary, with around two-thirds of the stages new and several tests reversed from their usual direction.

The route has also been made more compact, with shorter liaison distances adding to the revised format.

MCRELEAN AND SESKS RETURN IN RALLY1

Josh McErlean and Mārtiņš Sesks return to Rally Finland in the Ford Puma Rally1 after promising performances at the event last year.

Their recent pace in Estonia provides confidence heading into another fast-gravel rally, where precision and speed will again be central to performance.

ARMSTRONG RETURNS AFTER NINE YEARS

Jon Armstrong makes his first Rally Finland appearance since 2016, when he competed in a Ford Fiesta R2T.

His return follows his high-speed Rally1 experience in Estonia and provides another opportunity to tackle the famous Finnish stages.

Mille Johansson and Romet Jürgenson will compete in Ford Fiesta Rally2 machinery. Both drivers bring previous Rally Finland experience and recent form from Estonia into an event known for its passionate home crowd.

RALLY FINLAND 2026 EVENT STATS

• Round: 10/14

• Date: July 30 – August 2

• Surface: Gravel

• Base: Jyväskylä

• Stages: 20

• Competitive Distance: 316.04 km

• Total Distance: 1,278.06 km

Richard Millener, M-Sport Ford World Rally Team Principal, said: “We haven’t had a lot of time to re-charge after Estonia, but after a busy re-prep week we are now ready to go again and take on Rally Finland. We’ve got a lot of valuable learning to bring from Estonia and the crews are working hard to apply this knowledge to the upcoming challenge in Finland.

“I’d like to extend a huge thank you to the team for their hard work to get the cars ready to go again after only a few short days. I’m looking forward to seeing what Finland brings for the team.”

CREW LINE-UP

FORD PUMA RALLY1

#55 / Josh McErlean & Eoin Treacy

Rally Finland 2025 result: 7th WRC

Rally Estonia 2026 result: 43rd WRC (SR)

Current championship position: 13th WRC

Josh McErlean said: “Finland is always one of the highlights of the season and one of my favourite rallies on the calendar. Driving these incredible Rally1 cars over the famous Finnish roads is something every driver dreams of. We’re looking to build on the positives from Estonia and continue making progress throughout the weekend.”

#95 / Jon Armstrong & Shane Byrne

Armstrong competed in Rally Finland once in 2016 in the RC4 category in a Ford Fiesta R2T

Rally Estonia 2026 result: 9th WRC

Current championship position: 12th WRC

Jon Armstrong said: “I’m looking forward to the ultimate rally experience with the final year of Rally1 cars. I’ve only done Finland once before, which was 10 years ago, so it will certainly be a tough challenge to be on the limit from the word go. But we will certainly give it our best and build on our positive pace from Estonia.”

#22 / Mārtiņš Sesks & Renārs Francis

Rally Finland 2025 result: 8th WRC

Rally Estonia 2026 result: 7th WRC

Current championship position: 15th WRC

Mārtiņš Sesks said: “After seeing some good pace from us in Estonia, I’m looking forward to seeing what we can achieve in Finland. Estonia was great preparation, it has a lot of similarities to Finland, and I think we will be able to be competitive next week.”

FORD FIESTA RALLY2

#39 / Romet Jürgenson & Siim Oja

Rally Finland 2025 result: 6th WRC2

Rally Estonia 2026 result: 8th WRC2

Current championship position: 34th WRC2

Romet Jürgenson said: “Finland is always one of the highlights of the season - it has a unique character of roads which are always really enjoyable to drive. There are a lot of new stages this year, some reversed stages, so there will be a lot of driving by pacenotes which should suit me well. We will try and improve on last year’s pace and we definitely want to be a bit better than we were in Estonia, so we have a bit of time now to analyse and improve.”

#35 / Mille Johansson / Johan Grӧnvall

Rally Finland 2025 result: 6th Junior WRC

Rally de Portugal 2026 result: 6th WRC2

Mille Johansson said: “Rally Finland is one of the highlights of the WRC season and a rally every driver dreams of competing in. The roads are incredibly fast and demand total commitment from the very first stage.

“Our goal is to build our pace from the start, stay consistent, and make the most of every opportunity. The competition is extremely strong, but if we execute our plan and avoid mistakes, I believe we can fight for a strong result. I’m really looking forward to being back with the team again and to be back competing in Finland.”