Rally Finland will return to the Junior World Rally Championship calendar in 2024.
The iconic fast gravel event features on the five-round JWRC schedule for the first time since 2019 when the category used two-wheel-drive cars. Tom Kristensson prevailed on that occasion, en route to second in the 2019 standings.
Finland’s August event will be the penultimate rally of the JWRC season and takes the place of Estonia on an otherwise unchanged schedule.
The season begins on snow with Rally Sweden in February. Crews will then take their centrally-prepared Ford Fiesta Rally3 Evos on to the asphalt stages of Rally Croatia in April.
The remaining three events are all on gravel. The arduous Rally Italy Sardinia begins the summer season, before the young drivers get to test their mettle through the high-speed Finnish stages.
The JWRC championship will conclude, as has become traditional, in Greece on the Acropolis Rally in September. The rough gravel event will once again carry double points, meaning that the title fight will almost certainly go down to the wire.
The 2023 JWRC title was won by William Creighton, who claimed the prize of four WRC events in Fiesta Rally2 machinery in 2024. A similar prize, which also includes a Pirelli tire package and testing, is up for grabs in next year’s championship.
JWRC manager Maciej Woda believes that next year “is shaping up to be a stellar year for Junior WRC with the return of Finland’s famous roads alongside other completely unique and popular events.
“I think this calendar offers the best way to sample almost every surface the WRC has to offer and will help to nurture young talents who are focused on growing and developing on the world stage.
“I am particularly looking forward to turning our attention to next season now as we are already speaking with numerous interested competitors. The calendar is the final piece in the puzzle for those who had one or two question marks over their plans for next year.
“This calendar comes as a result of close cooperation with the FIA and WRC Promoter. We wanted to find a balance between selecting the most appealing rallies while also keeping reasonable spacing between events to help competitors complete their necessary preparations.”
