Junior WRC
Junior WRC is the FIA's under-29 rally championship.
The FIA Junior WRC Championship is an international rallying series for drivers under 29, run within the World Rally Championship framework. Governed by the FIA and promoted by M-Sport Ltd, it has been held annually since 2013. The series serves as a stepping stone for future WRC champions, including Sébastien Loeb and Sébastien Ogier.
Quick Facts
- Category
- Group Rally3
- Country/region
- International
- Tires
- Hankook
- Champion driver
- SWE Mille Johansson
- Champion codriver
- SWE Johan Grönvall
Facts from the source article.
History
The championship's origins trace to 2001 as the FIA Super 1600 Drivers' Championship, won by Sébastien Loeb in a Super 1600 Citroën Saxo. It became the Junior World Rally Championship in 2002, with an upper age limit of 29 introduced in 2003. In 2007, events were confined to Europe. Due to an FIA rule on the word 'world', the 2007 season was called the FIA Junior Rally Championship. The 2010 season was the last Junior World Rally Championship. In 2011, the WRC Academy Cup replaced it, with M-Sport providing identical Ford Fiesta R2 cars. The series was renamed FIA Junior WRC in 2013. Citroën ran the championship from 2014 using Citroën DS3 R3T cars, while M-Sport regained rights in 2017 with Ford Fiesta R2 cars. The Ford Fiesta Rally4 was introduced in 2020. From 2018, the calendar reduced to five rallies with double points at the final round. In 2022, the championship switched to Rally3 four-wheel drive cars, and the FIA title was called WRC3 Junior; the FIA Junior WRC name was restored in 2023.
Rules
Junior WRC is open to drivers under 29 who have not been a Priority 1 driver in a WRC event. All competitors drive identical Ford Fiesta Rally3 cars on Pirelli tyres. There is no minimum number of rounds, and all rounds count toward points. The classification points system matches the WRC, with the last rally awarding double points to those who started at least three previous rounds. No Power Stage points are awarded, but one bonus point is given for each stage win. The Nations Trophy sums points of the best driver per nation each round, excluding stage points.
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