Taylor Gill is looking to continue his stellar start to the year, winning two of the three Junior World Rally Championship (JWRC) rounds contested so far in 2025.

The 21-year-old also returns to the scene of his first Junior World Rally Championship victory, as he aims to extend his 2025 series lead.

He and his co-driver, fellow Australian Dan Brkic, lead the JWRC by seven points with two rounds remaining.

This weekend’s Rally Finland is virtually a home event for the Aussies, who live in the Land of the 1000 Lakes during the rally season.

Gill says the pair is eager to return to its ‘home roads’ and try to repeat their victory from last year.

“Last year was like a dream come true, winning our first WRC round in front of a large group of our supporters from Australia,” Gill said.

“Even though we’re thousands of miles from home, having some Aussie support really does give you a boost.

“We’ve had a very busy few weeks, competing in Greece, then in rounds of the European and Finnish rally championships, so I feel I’m in a good groove and driving well.

“After the rigours of Greece, it will be nice to drive a rally where we aren’t too concerned about punctures or damage to the car from big rocks. We can just concentrate on driving as fast as we can.”

Rally Finland is typified by its fast and smooth roads with a hard-packed base. Low on puncture risk and generally consistent throughout, it is widely regarded as one of the most enjoyable events of the season.

Rally Finland starts in the city of Jyvaskyla on Thursday evening (local time), running over 20 special stages and 300 kilometres of competitive distance.

“If you’d said to me a couple of years ago that Rally Finland would be my home event, I’m not sure I’d have believed you,” Gill said.

“But I feel comfortable on the stages, and having lived here for a while now, it does feel like home.

“Dan and I have prepared the best that we can, and now just need to drive a clean rally.

“There’s no doubt that Mille (Johansson) will be fast again, but he’s not the only driver we need to be keeping an eye on. I’m sure it’s going to be a fight right to the finish.”

As the Championship stands, Gill currently leads the JWRC by seven points from Swedish flyer Mille Johansson, with all 10 drivers in the championship behind the wheel of identical Ford Fiestas.

You can follow this year’s Rally Finland at the official WRC website, www.wrc.com