Volland all-set for sophomore season in European Rallycross’ top-flight

After clinching the crown at Euro RX3 level in 2024, Volland stepped up to Euro RX1 – the pinnacle of European competition – last year. Despite having to acclimatise to four-wheel-drive as well as the extra power and weight of his Audi S1, in the curtain-raising outing at Lousada, he was immediately on the money, outpaced in Q1 by only Volland Racing team-mate Yury Belevskiy – barely half-a-second adrift of the driver who would go on to take the title.

Further top three runs in Q2 and Q3 in Portugal kept the young German firmly in the hunt, but a mistake while leading his race in Q4 incurred sufficient damage to rule him out of the remainder of the weekend. 

He admitted that it took him a little while to recover mentally from that setback – a fourth-place finish at Nyirád the highlight of the following four rounds – but a standout showing in the French Championship at Lohéac and progression to the final on his FIA World Rallycross Championship bow in Istanbul saw Volland subsequently rediscover his excellent earlier form.

“My performances and results towards the end of last season definitely helped to rebuild my confidence,” acknowledged the 25-year-old, who is currently studying mechanical engineering at university. “To reach the final at Lohéac against so many local specialists, and again in Türkiye on my World RX debut was really encouraging. Myself and Joni [Turpeinen] were the sole Euro RX guys to get through.”

After securing fourth in the Euro RX1 standings in 2025, Volland is aware that the challenge will only intensify this year, with the likes of former champions Andreas Bakkerud and Patrick O’Donovan having committed to the series, alongside a flurry of fellow young guns including Damian Litwinowicz, Andor Trepák and Martin Enlund. It is a battle he is relishing.

“The level of competition looks to be incredibly high – the toughest in quite a few years, I would say,” mused the Roth native. “Having so many cars in the field will produce some really spectacular action.

“It will also make it more enjoyable for us as drivers – not to mention more perilous! Whereas before, you could often get away with issues in the heats as the field wasn’t that big, now, every single problem in the qualifying stages will be penalised and could result in missing the semi-finals.

“I want to take part in as many races as possible, which means reaching the final as often as possible – and at the tracks where we’re strongest, we need to be aiming for the podium.

“I haven’t been back in the car since Istanbul last September, and after such a long winter break, you always feel a little bit rusty, so I definitely need to get a bit of testing under my belt and then we’ll see where we are in Rīga. I drove there a long time ago, and while I don’t remember it that well, I enjoy high-grip circuits generally and they tend to suit my driving style. Hopefully we can get off to a good start and then build some momentum from there.”

Following the opening round at the historic Biķernieku trase in the Latvian capital on 9-10 May, Euro RX competitors will proceed to lock horns at Nyirád in Hungary (30-31 May), Höljes in Sweden (4-5 July), Mondello Park in Ireland (18-19 July), Lohéac in France (29-30 August) and finally Lousada in Portugal, where champions will be crowned on 12-13 September.