Tipperary's Coleman claims Roman podium in hunt for European title
The Clonmel youngster took third place in the M-Sport Fiesta Rally3 Trophy in Rome with navigator Killian McArdle by his side
Casey Jay Coleman remains firmly in Championship contention following a third straight European podium finish last weekend at the Rally di Roma Capitale in Italy, the latest round of the 2026 FIA European Rally Championship (ERC).
A final stage push saw the Clonmel youngster grab third place in the M-Sport Fiesta Rally3 Trophy standings on the event, leaving him just a single point off the lead of the series with just two round remaining in Poland and Czechia, while also firmly in the hunt to claim the hugely coveted ERC3 title with Coleman lying in the top-3 of the series.
Based out of the Italian capital, the event began with a spectacular street stage outside The Colosseum , and with the historic streets lined with thousands of spectators it was a unique way to kickstart the weekend, in high temperatures throughout the event.
After the lights and excitement of the Roman city opener, the rally properly kicked off with a trio of stages to the East of the capital. With a pair of top-3 times set in the RLA Autosport prepared Ford Fiesta Rally 3, Casey Jay Coleman was in a buoyant mood at the mid-day service.
“It’s been a really good morning, We were on a good push on the opening stage until it was red flagged and stopped due to an incident with another competitor but we followed it up with two very good stages to leave us right in the mix in the M-Sport Fiesta Rally3 Trophy and ERC3 so really happy with that. It’s a long rally ahead, so I need to keep the push on now for the rest of the event”.
The push was indeed kept on, and by the end of the opening day Coleman would lie third which a beaming Coleman noted at the end what had been a gruelling afternoon.
“We have had a really strong day and hold third position overnight. Killian and I are really enjoying the event and stages, and with our pace being very close to the top crews we know we have more to come!”
As expected thanks to knowledge gained competing on the event in 2025, Rally di Roma Capitale proved one of the most difficult events on the FIA ERC calendar. High temperatures, constantly changing grip levels and stages heavily affected by corner-cutting created extremely challenging conditions throughout the weekend.
Sunday brought a shorter route and just four stages, but it was not without plenty of drama and excitement. Time lost on the Monastero - Monte Livata stage saw Casey Jay Coleman slip outside the podium standings, but an aggressive attack on the closing Canterino - Gerano powerstage saw him reclaim third position in the M-Sport & Pirelli backed Trophy series as well as claim valuable extra points in the highly competitive ERC3 class.
Speaking at the end of the event, Coleman reflected on another good weekend in Rome, returning to a European podium for the second successive year in the heart of the Italian capital.
“It has been a pretty good weekend for us in Rome. It is a good result for the championship and we’re very satisfied with our speed, especially on Saturday on some very challenging stages. We knew coming to Rome that it would be one of the most demanding rallies of the season so we can be satisfied with the performance and to get on the podium in the M-Sport Fiesta Rally3 Trophy was great.”
With the Roman adventure now completed, focus turns quite quickly to the all-new challenge that lies ahead in Poland and the legendary Rajd Polski from July 24th to 26th.
With the Katowice based event returning to asphalt for the first time in over twenty years, Casey Jay Coleman will be aiming to use his strong experience on sealed-surface rallies to boost his hopes of claiming both the M-Sport Fiesta Rally3 Trophy and ERC3 titles.
Casey Jay Coleman is supported by the Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy, Suirway Group, Keltech, Lyons Motor Group, Murray Motorsport, Cappoquin Logistics & Killsheelin Limestone Quarries.