ERC
McRae keeping positive, looking to an ERC future and a day with the stars
Max McRae was quick to take the positives out of his JDS Machinery Rali Ceredigion outing in the FIA European Rally Championship earlier this month.
The Briton, who is in his first season at ERC1 level after two impressive Junior ERC campaigns, dropped out of contention when he understeered off the road on a slippery right-hander nearing the finish of the first Y Diafol stage on leg one and got stuck in a ditch.
He eventually rejoined but was almost an hour down on the leaders before his challenge on the opening day ended for good when he stopped with suspension damaged caused by contact with a bank on the repeat of Y Diafol.
The 21-year-old restarted on Sunday following repairs to his Citroën C3 Rally2 and showed his potential with the fourth fastest time on the rain-hit SS11.
“I didn’t push at all but the time was good compared to everyone else apart from Jon [Armstrong], who was pushing like crazy so was quite a lot quicker,” said McRae, who was part of the Team MRF Tyres line-up on the Welsh Tarmac round.
“We’ve had two podiums in the British championship [this season] but we just haven’t had a break in the ERC but our time will come. I’m still lacking experience and we haven’t managed to do the full championship this year so it’s not like we’ve had incredible mileage. The pace is improving for sure and we’re quicker than we were at the start of the year, but it just needs to come together for a result.”
McRae clocked a fourth fastest stage time on JDS Machinery Rali Ceredigion
© ERC
Of his plans for 2026, McRae said: “I hope to make it back to the ERC. It's the best
championship as a proving ground but we just have to wait and see what's possible. And obviously it all depends on the big budget question.”
McRae’s next outing is the International McRae Rally Challenge at the Knockhill Racing Circuit in Scotland from September 20-21. The event pays tribute to his late uncle, the rallying legend Colin McRae, and features a star-studded entry list. Among those taking part are Max McRae’s grandfather Jimmy, 1984 WRC champion Stig Blomqvist, multiple IndyCar champion and Indianapolis 500 winner Dario Franchitti, six-time Olympic track cycling champion Chris Hoy and ERC title contender Jon Armstrong.
“It’s going to be a really fun event, there's no pressure,” McRae said. “It's just go out and have fun, put on a show for the fans. It was very, very special in 2022 when we had the last one so it will be no different this time.”
