• Front-wheel-drive debut on gravel: Claire Schönborn successfully breaks new ground at the FIA European Rally Championship (ERC) round in Sweden
• Key takeaways: top-10 finish in the Junior ERC category and a steep learning curve
• Famous Colin’s Crest jump in its early-summer guise: successful ERC season opener in the Opel Corsa Rally4

Claire Schönborn and co-driver Michael Wenzel made a strong start to the Junior ERC campaign in Sweden. At the Royal Rally of Scandinavia, the rally itself was completely uncharted territory for the German driver – and on top of that, she contested a gravel rally in a front-wheel-drive car for the very first time. Famous jumps such as Colin’s Crest and high-speed gravel sections that the rally world knows mainly from WRC outings at the same venue in winter trim – tackled with fresh pace notes and the Opel Corsa Rally4, which is new to her: a genuine challenge. The learning curve proved steep: with steady improvements, particularly on the second passes through the special stages, Schönborn/Wenzel caught attention. The final result was a top-10 finish in the Junior classification of the FIA European Rally Championship (ERC). Her ADAC Opel Junior Team team-mates Timo Schulz/Maresa Lade (GER/GER) and Tom Heindrichs/Jonas Schmitz (BEL/LUX) celebrated a one-two.

“A front-wheel-drive debut on gravel, and at a rally with such iconic sections – I’m pleased with tenth place! In particular, the fact that I kept improving is something I see as a good sign. No previous pace notes to build on, completely different handling on gravel compared with last year’s car, and on top of that genuinely every single corner being new to me – the challenge was anything but small. I’m glad we handled it well, and I’m looking forward to the next ERC round!”
CLAIRE SCHÖNBORN

Stage times improve steadily

Just how steep Claire Schönborn’s learning curve is becomes clear from an analytical look at her stage times. While the German native initially had to adapt to the new conditions – front-wheel drive on gravel – she edged significantly closer to the Junior ERC pace on the second pass of each stage. In medium-speed corners, the car’s rotation through the turn was particularly tricky on the first loop – an issue Claire Schönborn promptly addressed and improved on significantly.

Setback on Saturday

Claire Schönborn and Michael Wenzel did have to deal with a small setback on Saturday’s closing stage, however. On the stage that features the famous Colin’s Crest jump, they had the misfortune of clipping a stone early on, damaging the wheel rim and the wheel bearing, and from then on had to contend with extremely inconsistent brake pressure. Despite losing around half a minute as a result, Schönborn/Wenzel defended their top-10 position by Saturday evening.

Satisfaction on Sunday

On the final Sunday of the rally, steady progress and a slightly modified stage profile came together to round off Claire Schönborn’s lasting overall impression of the event: with quicker stage times, Sunday provided the ideal finish. Only a puncture after a further stone strike briefly took the shine off the positive overall picture. Claire Schönborn also used Sunday to familiarise herself further with the Hankook tyres ahead of the next gravel event.

Claire Schönborn won’t have to wait long for her next dose of rally action. On 29 and 30 May, the all-electric ADAC Opel GSE Rally Cup holds its opening event around Eindhoven (Netherlands). The ERC calendar is equally relentless – with the European Championship round in Italy, based around the capital Rome, running from 3 to 5 June.