Save the best until last: Claire Schönborn claims her best result of the season during the final round of the 2025 FIA Junior WRC Championship. At the Central European Rally in the border triangle of Austria, Czech Republic and Germany, Schönborn impressed and finished 16th overall and fifth in class with her turbocharged four-wheel-drive Ford Fiesta. She was also the top German finisher to highlight a hugely strong debut campaign. “What an intense and fantastic rally week. It was just great to see so many people here at the various stages and in the service park cheering us on. That gave us an extra boost. I’m all the more delighted with our speed and the result,” said the excited local hero on the finish ramp. The result brings her first season in the World Rally Championship to an emphatic conclusion and represents the highlight so far of a sporting adventure that began just over a year ago. Schönborn went into her home event with plenty of extra motivation. On her familiar asphalt surface, the 26-year-old quickly found her rhythm: right from the start, Schönborn was able to keep pace with the fastest in her class and was in the top five of the Junior WRC classification after the first two stages – both a sign of things to come and a good omen. On the final day of the rally, she once again underlined her exceptional performance with strong times and ended the Junior WRC season on a high note.

Quote from Central European Rally

Unbelievable! To be honest, I’m very proud of our performance and my development over the past few months. This rally marked the start of my journey in WRC Promoter’s Beyond Rally Women’s Driver Development programme exactly one year ago. It was the first event that I was able to compete in for the second time. Even though we lost a second or two in one or two special stages, I’m very happy with our performance and the result overall. We managed to set the fourth-fastest time in the shakedown, which I was very happy about. We improved steadily throughout the rally and brought the car home unscathed, apart from a few scratches. That’s exactly what we wanted. The fan support was just amazing. The queues in the service park were incredible. I am very happy to have been part of this rally and think it’s a shame that it was the last world championship round in Germany for the time being. For me, it’s now time to look ahead. We are working hard to remain part of the WRC. I still only have one plan A, and that is to prove my talent at the highest level.”
Claire Schönborn

Recap of the Central European Rally

The autumn rally across Central Europe featured 18 special stages covering a total of 306.08 kilometres – with sections through Austria, Czech Republic and Germany. After the first day with two special stages, Schönborn was in fifth place in Junior WRC. With this positive feeling she headed into a demanding Friday, which ran through the Bohemian Forest for most of its 99 timed kilometres. While some participants stumbled on the tricky asphalt stages, Schönborn remained unfazed by the constantly changing conditions on stages that lacked grip and presented a significant challenge to remain error-free. Her performance gave plenty for the fans following the action unfold to cheer as they watched the engineer race along fast country roads and narrow mud-coated lanes. She put herself in a good position for Saturday’s longest leg featuring 103.64 kilometres of special stages. The German was well prepared thanks to her co-driver Michael Wenzel and Nico Otterbach, who collects all available route and weather information in the background and passes it on to the WRC Young Driver Team. The battle against the clock culminated on Sunday with four special stages, including the decisive Power Stage, Mühltal 2. Schönborn kept her cool and moved up in the standings, finishing as the best German driver at the Central European Rally and securing a top-five finish in the Junior WRC ranking.

Schönborn concluded her debut season in the Junior WRC in seventh position out of 14 registered competitors as Mille Johansson clinched the title with a class victory of 1.6s after winning the last stage in dramatic fashion. The factory Toyota pairing of Kalle Rovanperä and Jonne Halttunen won the Central European Rally overall by 43.7s ahead of their teammates Elfyn Evans/Scott Martin and Ott Tänak/Martzin Järveoja (Hyundai, +49.3s).