Forest Rally to welcome huge field as returnees headline 2026 entry list

The entry list for the ARC Plant Hire Forest Rally has been released with a strong field of more than 30 cars confirmed to take on the second round of the 2026 EROAD Australian Rally Championship (ARC).

In what is one of the strongest entry lists in the championship in recent times, the 12-stage event will welcome an impressive collection of 13 top spec machinery with the big four manufacturers in Toyota, Skoda, Hyundai and Ford all represented.

While there will be plenty of returning crews from the opening round of the season, including Accent Benchtops Rally Queensland winner Harry Bates, who returns to Australia from a Rally Portugal debut, the WA event will welcome a number of familiar faces back to the championship.

Headlining the list of returning crews will be Swedish Internationals Tom Kristensson and Andreas Johansson, who make their first appearance in the ARC since the same event last year and will be looking to go one step better following a well-deserved podium in 2025.

The pair will once again be behind the wheel of the Skoda Fabia R5, and join the two Pedders Rally Team Protected by Famous Insurance Skoda Fabia Rally2 cars led by Scott Pedder/Glenn Macneall and Jackson Long/Damien Long.

Regular West Australians Alex Rullo and Peter Rullo are due to make their first appearances of the year in their respective IntelliSpatial Fleetcare Hyundai i20 N Rally2 cars after missing the season opener in Queensland, with Alex to co-drive with James Marquet and Peter to run with Brad Jones again after teaming up in New Zealand earlier this year.

Another popular stalwart of the championship back for the first time since finishing fourth overall in last year’s Buckby Motors Rally Tasmania are Irish pairing Richie Dalton and Mac Kierans, who are again in their Shamrock Motorsport Toyota GR Yaris AP4.

The duo are one of five top-spec Toyota cars in Western Australia with Toyota Gazoo Racing Australia’s Harry Bates/Coral Taylor and Lewis Bates/Anthony McLoughlin in their GR Yaris Rally2 cars, Troy Dowel and Bernie Webb in their regular Ezi Up GR Yaris AP4 following the East Coast Cup win in the season opener, while West Australian star Craig Rando is once again a GR Yaris AP4 with Scott Beckwith calling the notes for him.

Rounding out the top-level cars is ARC Plant Hire’s Eamonn McNabb and Shane Farrell in their Ford Fiesta Rally2 car and championship regular Tony Sullens/Julia Barkley in the MRF Tyres Peugeot 208 AP4.

The remainder of the field will all feature in the competitive WOLF Sport Cup, with local young gun Thomas Loughton and co-driver Michael Lloyd leading the charge in their Mitsubishi Lancer Evo.

The pair are joined by fellow incoming West Australian crews in Subaru WRXs such as K-tec Engineering Motorsport’s Keith Hamilton/David Humphreys, Shane Smith/Stephanie Esterbauer of Keegan Transport, DCL Contracting Group’s Frank O’Shea/Murish O’Connell, and Killarney Autos’ Kelly Thomas and Amelia Jordan.

Interstaters beginning their 2026 WOLF Sport Cup campaigns in WA will be Tasmanian Michael Nicholls in Mitsubishi Mirage G4 alongside Victorian James Brown, and New South Welshmen Jarrod Keyte and Chris Stilling in their Subaru WRX STi and all locked in for the event.

In the Subaru WRX Cup, Toby Price and Ben Searcy headline the five-car field with Riley Walters and co-driver Andrew Crowley once again to serve as their biggest competitors – the young gun also leading the way in the Junior Cup, with West Aussie drivers Loughton and Thomas to join him in the Cup.

Other notable returnees from Queensland include Darren and Michelle Crozier, who look to have fixed their Ford Fiesta-G4 after a fire forced them out of the season opener, Racing Dipsy’s Shane and Sylvie Garner in their Racing Dipsy 1994 Subaru Impreza, who are joined in the Classic Cup by Ronan Sharkey and John Harkin in their Subaru Impreza, and 2WD Cup drivers David Smith/Rodger Pederson in their Ford Fiesta.

View the full entry list here.

The ARC Plant Hire Forest Rally takes place in and around the forests of Nannup on 21-24 May.

QUOTES
Ross Tapper
Event Director

“We’re looking forward to another great Forest Rally, to have Tom [Kristensson] make the trip from Sweden again is a huge effort,” Tapper said.

“The WRX Challenge continues to grow every year and with the top ARC competitors from around the country heading west alongside some exciting first-time competitors, we’re excited to bring together what promises to be a great event. We drove the roads just last week and they’re in amazing condition.”

Adrian Coppin
ARC Managing Director

“It’s incredibly exciting to see such a strong field assembled for Forest Rally, particularly with more than 30 cars entered and all four manufacturers represented at the top level of the championship,” Coppin said.

“The return of a number of fan favourite drivers and crews adds even more excitement to what is already shaping up to be one of the standout events of the 2026 season. The depth of competition right across the field is fantastic for the championship and for rally fans in Western Australia.”