World title within reach for Gill and Brkic

Taylor Gill and Dan Brkic begin this weekend’s Central European Rally in the lead of the Junior World Rally Championship, and must finish well to become the first Australians to win the coveted world title.

The Aussies enter the event with a 14-point lead in the series, but with the final event awarding double points, any of the top four drivers in the championship standings have a theoretical chance of being crowned Junior World Rally Champion late Sunday evening.

The rally, run across the tarmac roads of Germany, Austria, and the Czech Republic, is new to Gill; however, preparations for the event have gone to plan.

“We’ve had an almost perfect lead-in for this event,” Gill explained. “Having competed at the European Rally Championship round in Croatia a fortnight ago, we come in with confidence in the Ford Fiesta Rally3 on tarmac.

“We’ve had time to analyse our performance in Croatia, look at where we can improve, and are ready to fight tooth and nail in this final round of the championship.”

Gill and Brkic completed a pre-event test for the event on Monday, and it’s all systems go for their FIA Rally Star team, with more support than ever behind the Aussies.

"For Taylor and Daniel, this weekend is absolutely pivotal," FIA Rally Star Project Leader, Jérôme Roussel, said.

"They’ll need to draw on every lesson, every kilometre, and every ounce of experience they’ve gained over the past four years to deliver a complete, consistent drive and bring the title home.

"To see a second FIA Rally Star crew claim the Junior WRC crown in as many years, following Romet Jürgenson’s triumph in 2024, would be an immensely proud moment and a fitting reward for the programme’s commitment to nurturing world-class talent."

Despite Gill’s stranglehold on the top placings so far this season (a run that includes two firsts and two second places), the championship is still all to play for.

Gill’s main rival, Swede Mille Johansson, has won more individual stages, but the Aussie has been far more consistent. The winning driver will need to show both outright speed and consistency to snatch the title.

“The championship is set up in a way to keep competitors enticed for the whole year, which makes it exciting going into the final round," Gill said.

“We need to put the season so far behind us, as it's pretty much a winner-takes-all situation here in Central Europe, so we’ll be pushing for the win.”

Gill’s rivals include the aforementioned Johansson, Ali Turkkan (Turkey) and Eamonn Kelly (Ireland), who have all shown strong pace across the season.

This event brings a different challenge, though, to what has so far been a close championship conducted on exclusively loose surfaces. The tarmac lanes of Central Europe are the first tarmac challenge of the season.

Winning the Junior World Rally Championship would mean everything to Gill, who has left no stone unturned to eclipse the crews he has been driving against for almost two years.

“At every rally we do media activities with the other drivers, so we’ve got to know each other quite well,” Gill added.

“It’s time to put that all aside now, though; it’s an all or nothing finish to the season here, and I’ll be pushing to do myself, my sponsors, and all of Australia proud.”

Drivers at this weekend’s Central European Rally will receive double points for their finishing position, with a single bonus point remaining for every stage win across the weekend.

The Central European Rally gets underway on Thursday evening and will conclude on Sunday after four long days of rallying.

A Junior World Rally Champion will be crowned in the late hours of Sunday evening AEST time.