KEY EVENT STATS
Surface: Gravel
Base: Jyväskylä
Stages: 20
Competitive Distance: 316.04 km
Total Distance: 1,278.06 km
WEEKEND FOCUS
After showing promising pace on last weekend's Rally Estonia, the M-Sport crews head to Finland to carry that gravel momentum into the 'gravel grand prix'.
Rally Finland promises the high-speed stages loved by fans worldwide, with crests, jumps and sweeping bends that demand accuracy and leave no margin for error.
The 75th running arrives with a substantially revised route; around two-thirds of the stages are new, and the itinerary has been made more compact, with shorter liaisons and several tests running in the opposite direction to their usual format.
Josh McErlean and Mārtiņš Sesks return to Finland in the Ford Puma Rally1 after promising displays last year, with their recent pace in Estonia carrying them into the event with confidence.
Jon Armstrong makes his first appearance in Finland since 2016, when he competed in a Ford Fiesta R2T, and will draw on his high-speed Rally1 experience from Estonia ahead of the famous Finnish stages.
Mille Johansson returns to the team alongside Romet Jürgenson in Ford Fiesta Rally2 machinery, both bringing prior experience of Finland and recent form from Estonia to an event with a fiercely partisan home crowd.
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.”
