McBride launches FIA Junior ERC bid in Sweden
Donegal driver Kyle McBride is among the 16 young prospects from across the continent lining up for the opening round of the 2026 FIA Junior ERC Championship, which gets underway at the BAUHAUS Royal Rally of Scandinavia this weekend.
The Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy contender takes the step up to Europe alongside co-driver Liam Callaghan in their Tagai Racing Technology-prepared Peugeot 208 Rally4. The high-speed loose-surface contest in Sweden marks the first of six scheduled events this year, with the ultimate championship prize being a coveted FIA Junior WRC drive.
McBride earned his graduation to the European stage after a standout campaign last season, and he heads into the weekend focused on adaptation and long-term progression.
“The ERC is the next step in my career,” McBride said. “I won the Stellantis Cup IRE/UK last year and the prize fund is free entries and free tyres for the ERC, so yes, basically it’s the next step in my career.”
“This season will be a big step up for me, getting to do all new events I have never done before. So my main focus will be trying to learn and adapt to the events as quickly as possible. I want to start the season off steady with some good pace shown and hopefully we can get solid results. There are lots of things I want to learn, firstly competing at a much higher level and also the complete challenge of the complete event, from the test to the recce days and the tight schedules, I’m looking forward to that.”
Among the heavy competition facing the Irish crew is Germany’s Claire Schönborn. Backed by the official ADAC Opel Rally Junior Team, Schönborn fields an Opel Corsa Rally4 alongside experienced co-driver Michael Wenzel. She is highly regarded as one of the standout international drivers to watch as the junior category builds momentum this year.
The 16-crew junior field also features a strong international mix including local favorite Arvid Carlsson of Sweden, Timo Schulz of Germany, Belgium’s Tom Heindrichs, and a large Italian contingent spearheading the new Lancia Ypsilon Rally4 HF, including Francesco Dei Ceci and Davide Pesavento.
The crews face a grueling challenge over the weekend, tackling 16 competitive stages covering 185.94 kilometres of high-speed gravel roads.
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