JWRC breakthrough for Aussie Gill

It has been a two-year learning pilgrimage across Europe for Newcastle’s Taylor Gill alongside co-driver Dan Brkic, with the FIA Rally Star pair taking an historic breakthrough win at Rally Finland in the Junior class, their first on the World Rally Championship stage.

After being the youngest ever winner of the ARC Production Cup on home soil in 2022, Gill then competed for the chance to win his WRC Junior seat in 2023 via the international FIA Rally Star training and racing program in a Ford Fiesta Rally3.

Whilst he still occupies an M-Sport Fiesta seat, he’s doing it against the globe’s highest rated juniors on largely unfamiliar roads, with he and Brkic living and working in Finland and doing all they can for seat time and testing between rounds.

Their pre-rally warm-up saw them finish second in class at the national Pohjanmaa Finnish round before attempting what Gill described as a “bucket list rally”, taking the win over Turkish driver Ali Turkkan in a thrilling finish to win by just 2.1 seconds.

At one point on the Saturday, Gill and Brkic found themselves in eighth place after a puncture on SS12 left them +1:01.1 off the leader, before they then found themselves in a +19.3sec lead overnight.

“This is something that will stick with me for the rest of my life, that’s for sure,” said Gill.

“To win such an iconic rally on our first attempt means so much, especially now that we live here.”

With that victory, the pair are now second on the table with only one round remaining.

Prior to Finland, the #66 pairing had taken one podium across three rounds – a second place in Croatia – whilst in Sweden and Italy they battled mechanical woes on snow and gravel terrain to take eighth and sixth respectively.

But after leading into the final four stages on Sunday in Finland, Gill had 41.66km to survive on the fastest gravel roads he’d ever had to navigate, with a super quick Turkkan hunting him down.

Taylor Gill takes off in the Ford. Image: Supplied

After SS17 the pursuer cut the gap to +12.3sec, and then by a further second in the following 4.35km run at the Laajavuori stage.

Stage 19s longer 14.2km run saw the pressure turned on as the #70 Fiesta made it a +4.2 second difference before the 8.7km finale.

Although it was tight in the end, Gill also rode his luck earlier in the lay with engine troubles over the opening day, followed by the puncture that sent him down the order. Overall, he took two stage wins over SS11 and SS15, as well as being in the top-three across 12 of the 20 stages.

“It’s simply an amazing feeling to take the top step of the podium in our ‘home away from home in Finland,” Gill continued.

“The number of twists and turns that the weekend took showed that it was a true

rollercoaster, and despite a few little setbacks, Dan and I worked hard to stay patient throughout the whole rally.

“When we had our puncture on Saturday, we knew the time loss wasn’t massive, so we kept at it, knowing that anything could happen.

“I think it was that attitude that helped us set some great times and get us back in with a chance for victory.”

In terms of the championship picture, Gill is second in the table against his good mate, Estonian Romet Jurgenson.

The highly rated Estonian went off the road on Friday, which crippled his rally, despite the fact that he still took out a race high 10 stages.

With Jurgenson finishing twelfth, it leaves the Aussies only eight points behind him whilst having a 20 point buffer of Paraguayan Diego Dominguez in third.

With double points (50 for the win) on offer at the Acropolis Rally Greece finale, it will be anyone’s game on the rough Hellenic gravel.

“Winning this weekend gives us a chance in the championship,” he added.

“It’s something we’ve been working towards all year, and we’ll leave no stone unturned in our preparations for Greece next month.”

“The support we felt from those spectating at the rally and watching on at home in Australia was amazing, and we’re so grateful to know that everyone is behind us on this journey.

“This is a huge high and a great achievement, but there’s so much more work to do.”

Gill and Brkic will head to the Mediterranean Peninsula in five weeks time, on September 5-8.

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