The 19-year-old driver is heading out to chase success on Europe’s rally stages by competing in the ERC3 class of the European Rally Championship. He will contest a full season in a Ford Fiesta Rally3 run by the Finnish outfit KMS Racing. His co-driver will be another 19-year-old, Joonas Ojala.
Vatanen already has solid experience on home roads, the driver from Kiihtelysvaara, Eastern Finland, having won the Finnish Junior Championship titles in 2022 and 2024. This year’s programme has also included two WRC rallies in Finland and Sweden, as well as the gravel rounds of the European Championship in Hungary, Sweden and Poland. His results from last season’s ERC rallies included two second places in the ERC3 category, along with third in the WRC3 class at Rally Finland. The aim for the coming year is specifically to increase his pace on a new surface – asphalt.
“At this point, stepping up to the European Championship was seen as a good plan. There will be plenty of asphalt rallies, and they provide a chance to gain experience, which is only a good thing for the future. A couple of familiar events are included too, as we sampled some foreign rallies this year, so those will naturally feel a bit more familiar. Asphalt is a new surface, and we’ll begin practising it already this autumn and between rallies in the spring,” Vatanen explains.
Vatanen and Ford are a well-known pairing at the top of the rallying world. Another driver from Eastern Finland, Ari Vatanen, won the World Rally Championship in 1981 at the wheel of a Ford Escort. Ari Vatanen comes from Tuupovaara, located just over 30 kilometres from the younger Vatanen’s home village of Kiihtelysvaara.
“In Seinäjoki, someone I know messaged me saying that Vatanen and Ford are back together again. I’ll certainly be asked whether I’m related to Ari. We’re not close relatives, but we share the same roots. Back in the day Vatanen and Ford enjoyed a lot of success, and hopefully the same pattern continues now,” Vatanen laughs.
The 19-year-old rising rally star does not want to take on pressure from the exploits of his famous relative.
“There will be pressure if you choose to take it. You just have to keep your feet on the ground, keep a cool head, focus on the job and give it everything.”
In the upcoming season, Vatanen is targeting success especially in the gravel rallies. On sealed-surface roads there is still likely to be more to learn.
“In gravel rallies, we need to be able to deliver results. Hungary is familiar from last year, and Sweden is familiar in terms of its roads. In both, we should be fighting for victory and through that achieve the best possible outcome. As for asphalt, winning the first event might be slightly over-optimistic, but of course that has to be the goal,” Vatanen sums up.
“A good result is needed for the sake of the championship, but with slightly more moderate expectations – a podium would be good. But you never know; if the tests go well and the asphalt starts to feel comfortable, then why couldn’t we fight for the win? We’ll be giving everything in every rally.”
