Fresh from the lessons of Rally Croatia, the M-Sport crews arrive on the Spanish islands with momentum and experience on their side, targeting a strong result on familiar roads.
KEY EVENT STATS
Surface: Asphalt
Base: Gran Canaria Stadium
Stages: 18
Competitive Distance: 301.30 km
Total Distance: 1,309.16 km
WEEKEND FOCUS
M-Sport returns to the familiar surroundings of Gran Canaria's iconic stages - known as the 'Circuit of the Atlantic' - where smooth, high-speed roads provide one of the most distinctive challenges on the WRC calendar.
With all three crews - McErlean and Armstrong in the Rally1 Fiesta, and Jürgenson in the Fiesta Rally2 - carrying experience of the Canary Island stages, the team will look to combine that knowledge with key learnings from last week's Croatia Rally as they target a strong result on this Spanish round.
Island fog, damp morning conditions and the threat of rain showers are set to be defining factors across the weekend. Much like Croatia, precision will be paramount as the crews look to deliver a clean and competitive performance.
Richard Millener, M-Sport Ford World Rally Team Principal, said: “We have a good bank of knowledge from Croatia to draw on heading into Rally Islas Canarias. Jon has shown some very impressive pace on asphalt, and with all three of our crews having experience of these stages, we're in a strong position to push for a solid result. The roads are fast and flowing, but fog and damp conditions can catch you out if you're not on top of it from the word go - so precision and consistency will be just as important here as they were last weekend. We're looking forward to getting back out there."
CREW LINE-UP
FORD PUMA RALLY1
#55 / Josh McErlean & Eoin Treacy
Croatia Rally 2026 result: 15th overall
Rally Islas Canarias 2025 result: 10th overall, until accident on Sunday morning
Current championship position: 23rd WRC
Josh McErlean said: "Rally Islas Canarias is another great opportunity for us to keep building our Tarmac pace. It's a very high-grip, fast and flowing rally, so it's all about commitment and precision. We've made some solid steps recently, and the focus is on continuing that progress - getting comfortable early and putting together a clean, consistent weekend."
#95 / Jon Armstrong & Shane Byrne
Croatia Rally 2026 result: 32nd Overall
Rally Islas Canarias 2024 result (ERC): 8th Overall
Current championship position: 13th WRC
Jon Armstrong said: "I'm really looking forward to the Canaries - I've been there a few times with ERC and it's always a big challenge. The roads are a lot more like a racetrack, and the traffic during recce can be quite hectic with all the tourism in the area, so just keeping everything in line is a challenge in itself. Managing tyre and brake temperatures will be crucial. We had a good Sunday session in Croatia where we tried some things with the set-up, and we're looking forward to putting that into practice here - hopefully we can keep fighting up with the Hyundais and fight for a top-five result."
FORD FIESTA RALLY2
#32 / Romet Jürgenson & Siim Oja
Croatia Rally 2026 result: 13th Overall (10th WRC2)
Rally Islas Canarias 2025 result: 53rd Overall (27th WRC2)
Current championship position: 27th WRC
Romet Jürgenson said: "The Canaries is a naturally very enjoyable event, but to be fast there you need the car in a very good set-up window - otherwise you're going to be well off the pace. The driving also needs to be smooth; you have to think about saving the tyres on the longer stages and keeping temperatures in check, so there are a lot of extra factors to consider. Last year our speed wasn't where we wanted it to be - we've generally struggled a little more on these wide, smooth Tarmac roads - so the aim this year is to close that gap, follow the faster drivers, and get a lot closer to the top. That's important for the future."
