Solid field confirmed for maiden ARC visit to Narooma

The EROAD Australian Rally Championship (ARC) will take another big step in the 2026 season with a strong field of 22 cars entered in the upcoming Toyota Gazoo Racing Narooma Forest Rally.

In what is the ARC’s first ever visit to the ever-popular New South Wales based event, there will be much riding on the weekend.

Although there are plenty of narratives to look out for this round – all eyes will be on championship leaders Harry Bates and Coral Taylor and if they can steer their Toyota Gazoo Racing Australia GR Yaris Rally2 to a second victory and extend their lead at the top.

The 2026 ARC title fight is fast becoming a tight affair as Scott Pedder and Glenn Macneall’s victory in Western Australia brought them to within 10 points of Bates and Taylor, with the second Toyota Gazoo Racing Australia GR Yaris Rally2 of Lewis Bates and Anthony McLoughlin a further seven points off.

Despite all three crews keen to stake a claim as early title favourites at the midway point of the season, the two Toyota crews have a slight advantage, having already competed at Narooma in a state-level capacity.

Joining the trio in the outright ARC will be two crews both looking to bounce back after a challenging visit to the west last month – Jackson and Damien Long in the Pedders Rally Team Protected by Famous Insurance Skoda Fabia R5 and a new look Troy Dowel and Bernie Webb, who enter the round behind the wheel of a Ford Fiesta Rally2.

There is no shortage of notable entries in Narooma, with Josh Redhead and Ray Winwood-Smith back after missing the ARC Plant Hire Forest Rally, and the exciting duo will lead the WOLF Sports Cup and the East Coast Cup fields in their WINPART Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 5.

Redhead and Winwood-Smith aren’t the only crew across the two classes back for the first time since Queensland, with Kristian Sprenger and Jarrad Vanderhor in their Subaru WRX and the popular Volkswagen Beetle G4 of Wayne Stewart and Lucas Zinsstag – the latter of which had an early retirement at Queensland.

The Toyota Gazoo Racing Narooma Forest Rally will also welcome plenty of familiar faces for rally fans around the country, with popular driver Tom Clarke making his first appearance since the 2025 season opener in Canberra.

Behind the wheel of the iconic Mitsubishi Evo Lancer EVO 3 and joined by co-driver Brad Jones, Clarke will be gunning for top East Coast Cup and WOLF Sports Cup honours.

View the full entry list.

In addition to Clarke and Jones, Victorian powerhouse team Warren Lee and David Lethlean of DFA Rally Team will contest their first ARC round since Gippsland last year, while young gun Jaidyn Gluskie gets his first opportunity at the East Coast Cup and WOLF Sports Cup for the year after being a late withdrawal from the season opener in Queensland.

With Mitch Garrad by his side, Gluskie will also be contesting the Junior Cup, where he is up against series debutant Lucas Reed and co-driver Isaac Ellis in their car.

The Wodonga Car World duo of Reed and Ellis won’t be the only crew to make their debut in Narooma, with Tumut Toyota’s James O’Malley and Jono Forrest in the 2014 Toyota 86 and Madman Escape’s Christopher and Kelly Carney in their 1991 Toyota Corolla amongst the new faces.

The Toyota Gazoo Racing Narooma Forest Rally serves as the third round of the 2026 EROAD Australian Rally Championship, and takes place in and around the forests of Narooma from 26-28 June.

QUOTES

Adrian Dudok
Toyota Gazoo Racing Narooma Forest Rally Clerk of Course

“We are extremely pleased with the ARC turnout for the national championship’s first ever event here, and we look forward to welcoming the best crews in the country to Narooma,” Dudok said.

“What’s even more exciting is the diversity of cars throughout the entry list – ranging from the top-spec machinery of the Rally2 cars to the old-school cars you don’t regularly see in the country’s highest level events.”