Armstrong impresses in Sweden: "With more consistency, we can fight at the front."

Despite the difficulties at the start of the weekend, Jon Armstrong managed to recover and establish himself as the first representative of M-Sport au Rally A mixed weekend for the British team in Sweden. Eager to make up ground in the championship after scoring zero points at Monte Carlo – a first in 24 years – M-Sport took a bold gamble: lowering the tire pressures of its three crews as much as possible to try and maximize the grip of its Ford Puma Rally1 cars. This strategy proved too aggressive, as all three Ford Puma Rally1s suffered multiple punctures on the second day.

Despite these incidents, Jon Armstrong managed to regroup. Delivering an overall impressive performance, he proved to be the strongest of the two Irishmen on the team. The 2022 Junior Rally Sweden winner finished eighth overall, 19,6 seconds behind the leader. Thierry NeuvilleNow twelfth in the championship, Jon Armstrong leaves Sweden with four valuable points.

« It was a pretty solid rally. I enjoyed driving the Rally1 in Sweden because the pace is very high. We showed good pace on several stages. It's the last year for the Rally1, so having this aerodynamic aspect is something I'm really enjoying. I'm looking forward to the other very fast rallies. Armstrong reveals this to AUTOhebdo. We surprised ourselves. It's positive that we were able to show good pace to Richard [Millener], Malcolm [Wilson], and John Caine from the Rally Academy. Admittedly, we're losing time on some sections of the stages, but if we can be more consistent, we can fight at the front."

His performance on Sunday against Thierry Neuville did not escape the notice of team manager Richard Millener. Seeing him beat Thierry twice over 25 kilometers is something very special. Honestly, I didn't expect it. [Thierry Neuville] is a world champion. "With this performance, Jon Armstrong justifies the confidence placed in him by M-Sport for the 2026 season."

Interview conducted by Pierre Barré, in Sweden. 

ALSO READ > Rally Sweden – Evans and Toyota were hungry for more