19-year-old Swede Mille Johansson secured the FIA Junior European Rally Championship title earlier this fall, alongside co-driver Johan Grönvall, with one rally still left in the season. As a reward for their victory, they won a spot in next year’s FIA Junior World Rally Championship. To prepare for this upcoming challenge, they will participate in the ERC final in Poland, driving a four-wheel drive Ford Fiesta Rally3, the same model used in the Junior WRC series.
This opportunity to compete in a Rally3 car at the Rally Silesia in Poland has been made possible by Mille and Johan’s team, IKsport, in collaboration with tire supplier Hankook.
“After securing the FIA Junior European Rally Championship title, we received a lot of congratulations, but things have been relatively calm in terms of rallying. We’ve had a few meetings about next year, but otherwise, I’ve mostly been taking it easy,” says Mille Johansson.
“It’s an amazing opportunity for Johan and me to drive a Rally3 car in Poland, thanks to IKsport and Hankook, who helped us with the budget for this race. It will be a great test ahead of next year’s JWRC adventure, and it will be our first time driving a four-wheel drive car on asphalt,” Mille continues.
The Rally3 car and FIA Junior WRC aren’t entirely new to Mille and Johan, as they made a guest appearance in the JWRC during Rally Sweden earlier this year, which they won. However, this time, they’ll be racing on asphalt, with the event taking place from October 11-13.
“We’re not putting in extra preparation for the event, as we see it mainly as practice for next year. So, we’re not aiming for a top finish, but we do want to get a good feel for the car and learn how it handles on asphalt,” Mille concludes.
Throughout this year’s Junior European Championship, Mille and Johan have competed in a front-wheel drive Opel Corsa Rally4 for the Slovenian team IKsport, using Hankook tires. In the Junior WRC, the cars are four-wheel drive Rally3 models.