ERC
Junior ERC round-up: Hard work pays off for rising talents
There was plenty of hard work on display during Barum Czech Rally Zlín, round five of the Hankook-equipped 2026 FIA European Rally Championship.
Dünker’s determination without equal
Colin Dünker not only showed great speed on his Barum Czech Rally Zlín debut, the German talent also demonstrated great determination as he restarted on leg two to finish in eighth place aboard his family-run Ford Fiesta Rally4. Dünker, who won the Zlín super special on Friday night, was third after SS5 but went off on gravel and blocked the road on SS7, retiring with front-end damage. He heroically worked until 02:00 to repair his car and took his first full-length stage win on SS12, having fixed a driveshaft issue at midday service. “We spun in the gravel section, the front hooked in a ditch, and we had to get out with the fans, luckily. But we blocked the road and it was a bit difficult to get to the end with cooler damage,” Dünker said at the completion of leg one. He added during leg two: “After the difficult day yesterday it’s quite nice to be back on the stages, Semetín is just lovely, I gave it a big push.”
McBride plays it smart
Kyle McBride drove with his head to bank his best Junior ERC finish so far. The Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy star placed fourth overall, with his error-free performance in the dark and dust of Saturday evening’s Buňc stage particularly impressive. “We had more left in us but we tried to play it smart,” the 2025 Stellantis Cup IRE/UK winner said. “We had no experience, but we were happy to hold onto fourth. It’s been a good solid rally, and we learned a lot. Every stage we’re learning something. This rally has been so tricky and we’re so happy we did every stage.”
Stage winner Sandrin’s highs and lows
Tommaso Sandrin delivered yet another strong performance during his second season Junior ERC, only for bad luck to mask his true potential. After tyre damage dropped him out of the podium fight on SS3, the Italian was eighth in class when a mechanical failure forced his exit on the first run through Semetín. “It had been a whole year since I last saw these roads, and I couldn’t wait to come back to what I consider some of the most beautiful and challenging roads in the world,” Sandrin said. “It was definitely a weekend of highs and lows. Our fight for the podium ended on SS3 after a puncture, but we kept pushing and maintained a top-five pace throughout the rally, even taking the win on the legendary 18-kilometre Bunč stage. Unfortunately, on Sunday, a driveshaft issue halfway through [SS9] forced us to retire while we were still maintaining the strong pace we had shown all weekend. A real shame, especially because we had a little more experience of Sunday’s stages from last year and were looking forward to making the most of it.”
Pröglhöf shows podium pace on comeback
Luca Pröglhöf was in the podium fight when time lost in the dark and dust of the Bunč stage on Saturday evening dropped him to sixth. Despite an off on SS10, the Austrian comeback star completed the top six on his first Junior ERC outing since his run to a podium finish on Croatia Rally last October. “I wanted it too much to be honest,” the ADAC Opel Rally Junior Team driver said. “After Saturday evening I was too mad, I couldn’t sleep well. In the morning I thought we could try to push to get onto the podium again but I was too fast on the entry on the third stage. I tried to stop the car with the handbrake, but it was too late and we took some damage. It’s a shame because our split time was good.”
Pesavento vows to come back stronger
After crashing out of Barum Czech Rally Zlín before he had the chance to shine, Davide Pesavento lost his provisional points lead. However, the Lancia Corse HF drive hopes his fall from the top is only temporary. “It was a mistake but with a big consequence,” he said. “We will come back.”
JDS Machinery Rali Ceredigion hosts the penultimate round of the 2026 FIA Junior ERC Championship from 4 - 6 September.
