Europes Best Ready for aHigh-Speed Battle Across Ceredigion

The sixth edition of the JDS Machinery Rali Ceredigion is ready to burst into life next weekend (4-6 September) with a record-breaking entry list of drivers from all corners of the continent ready to tackle three days of challenging stages through the west Wales countryside.

The UK's premier rally event will once again play host to the FIA European Rally Championship as well as the Motorsport UK British Rally Championship and a new addition to the event in 2026, the FIA European Historic Rally Championship for Pre 1992 machines.

In total, three separate rallies will be run across the event to accommodate the packed 149 car entry list, with the International and National events utilising all 16 timed special stages, while the Historic rally will use all but one of the sealed-surface tests across the weekend.

Five-time World Rally Championship event winner Kris Meeke (Andorra) is one of the star names attracted to the closed road challenge. As are ERC front runners Teemu Suninen (Finland), Andrea Mabellini (Italy), Mikołaj Marczyk (Poland) and Jakub Matulka (Poland).

Representing local hopes from the British Championship are Max McRae (Scotland), Meirion Evans (Wales) and two-time Rali Ceredigion winner Osian Pryce (Wales), who will all be eager to stand on the top step of the podium.

The Historic event boasts a line-up spanning the history of the sport, with the likes of the Lancia Stratos, Ford Escort Mk2, BMW M3, Triumph TR7 V8 and Porsche 911 all featuring. Look out for some of the best names in Historic rallying including FIA European Historic Championship leader Seb Perez, former British Rally Champion Mark Higgins, Polish star Maciej Lubiak and Welsh hope Tomas Davies.

Welshman John Dalton, in the Welsh-built Darrian T90 GTR, heads a National field of local stars including Dylan Davies, Aled Wyn Morgans and Rhys Wyn Davies. They're piloting an eclectic mix of cars with state-of-the-art, four-wheel-drive machines, front-wheel-drive giant killing pocket-rockets and entertaining rear-wheel-drive cars all on the stellar entry list.

The 2026 route has been carefully devised to offer a variety of different challenges for the crews as well as safe and spectacular Fan Zone vantage points for spectators wanting to view the competitive action. The rally warms up on Thursday (3rd September) on the Aberystwyth seafront, with a packed evening including the Rali Show, popular autograph session and Ceremonial Start – as well as the Rali Engage event, which helps inspire the next generation of motorsport fans and industry leaders.

What follows will be 16 special stages and 191km kilometres of action. After shakedown and qualifying stage on Friday morning, the rally blasts into life with two runs through the superspecial street stage right in the heart of Aberystwyth. Then it's the night-time challenge of Elerch and Blaenmelindwr running under the cloak of darkness to help spice up the proceedings as drivers search for every second against the clock to establish the early results order.

Saturday is the big challenge, with eight tests to the east of Aberystwyth featuring bumpy, moorland stages. A loop of three stages featuring Aberffrwd, the daunting Soar y Mynydd test and Cwm Elan is repeated before crews tackle the crowd-pleasing Aberystwyth street stage twice to finish the day.

All eyes will then turn to the finale on Sunday for traditional Welsh countryside stages, as crews thread their way through picturesque green lanes and villages. Two passes through Gorsgoch and Ty Glyn will help to decide the winners of the 2026 edition of the event. The second visit to Ty Glyn for the ERC crews will also be home to the Power Stage, with bonus points on offer for the fastest five drivers before the finish back on Aberystwyth Promenade.

Teemu Suninen, top seed in the International rally and leader of the FIA European Rally Championship, said: "It's a new rally for me so I need to see how the conditions are and understand the rally before I can push on the limit. The weather might also be interesting, I don't have experience with this car in the wet and I also need to think about the championship. The rally looks quite unique so I'm sure the local guys will be fast here."

Osian Pryce, top Welsh seed and leader of the British Rally Championship, said: "It's fantastic to have a home rally that's part of both the British and European championships and this year's route again looks challenging. There are some new stages and the dark stages look exciting, it's something I wish we could have more of. Once again there's a strong entry and the competition level is going to be even higher this year."

Maciej Lubiak, FIA European Historic Rally Championship competitor and top seed in the Historic rally, said: "I'm really looking forward to coming to Wales, it will be a completely new rally for me and my codriver Grzegorz Dachowski, and a new region for us. I've heard that the conditions can be very demanding, but actually I feel quite comfortable when things get difficult. There is also a lot for us to fight for in this rally, so I'm coming very motivated. I'm really looking forward to discovering the stages, meeting the fans and experiencing the atmosphere of rallying in Wales."

John Dalton, top seed in the National rally, said: "It's always a privilege to compete on such a high-profile, local event like this. It's a challenging rally and one that's got something that suits every driver and car, it's an endurance event and that's an approach that I love. Rali Ceredigion has transformed local opinion around motorsport and there's a real sense of excitement during the weekend - it's great that we have an event of this status on our doorstep."

Event Info

Date: 4-6 September 2026

Location: Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, Wales

Ceremonial start: 6pm, Thursday 3 September

No of stages: 16 stages totalling 191.34km

Surface: Tarmac

No of entries: 149

Longest stage: SS6&9 Soar y Mynydd 20.80km