Junior WRC
Chile finale highlights new-look FIA Junior WRC calendar
The 2026 FIA Junior WRC calendar has been confirmed, with the season set to come to a close in Chile for the very first time.
In a five-round calendar confirmed today (5 December), Rally Chile Bio Bío will host the all-important double points-scoring season finale. The 2026 calendar will also see crews traveling to Sweden, Croatia, Portugal and Finland.
The championship – the stepping stone for drivers aiming to move into the FIA World Rally Championship – will once again feature M-Sport Poland Ford Fiesta Rally3 Evos equipped with Hankook Tires and lubricated by Wolf Lubricants. All events will be played out across high-profile rounds of the FIA World Rally Championship.
Despite the addition of a round outside of Europe, the cost for competitors will not be impacted.
Taylor Gill competing in the FIA Junior WRC at Rally Sweden 2025
© WRC
At stake is one of the biggest prizes in rallying – four fully-funded WRC2 rounds with testing in 2027 in an M-Sport-run Ford Fiesta Rally2 which, under the new World Rally Championship regulations, means they will be competing in the same level of car as the leading WRC category.
The frozen snow and ice-packed forest roads of Sweden will set the stage for the championship’s opening round. Based out of Umeå, 2026 will mark the fifth consecutive season that the FIA Junior WRC has begun there – often providing the first-ever competitive experience on snow for competitors.
Switching settings entirely, the next round will take place on the mixed asphalt surfaces surrounding Croatia’s capital city, Zagreb. The changing surfaces, and the possibility of rain thrown into the mix, make precise pace-notes crucial for success.
Much like 2025, Portugal returns to the calendar albeit as the third round with sandy, rutted roads awaiting the Fiesta crews on the country’s north-west coast.
The penultimate round introduces crews to what is often described as rallying’s spiritual home: Secto Rally Finland. Set in the forests surrounding the central Finnish city of Jyväskylä, courage will come to the fore with Finland providing some of the fastest roads in the world of rallying.
The 2026 champion will be crowned in the central Chilean city of Concepción. A regular stop on the full WRC calendar, Chile provides competitors with fast-flowing and sometimes incredibly narrow forestry roads. Weather could also play a major part in the final result with heavy rain and fog a regular occurrence on this event.
“South America has produced a strong staple of junior crews in recent years, such as the Bulacia brothers and Diego Domínguez. It therefore feels fitting that we are visiting this part of the world in 2026,” enthused FIA Junior WRC championship manager Maciej Woda.
He continued: “Overall, the 2026 calendar offers a good mixture of challenges that reflect the WRC calendar as a whole and in order to win the title, crews will need to be able to display the adaptability to compete in a full array of conditions.”
FIA Road Sport Director Emilia Abel, added: “The 2026 FIA Junior WRC calendar gives the next generation of WRC talent a clearly defined and diverse development pathway.
“Each round presents a distinct technical challenge, from Sweden’s snowbanks to Chile’s fast and narrow forestry roads, and this variety is essential in preparing young drivers for the demands of the senior categories.
“We are confident that this calendar will equip emerging crews with the depth of experience required to progress toward the highest levels of the sport.
Any potentially interested drivers can contact Michał Moździerz at mmozdzierz@m-sport.co.uk
