Already impressive for his natural ease last season in the RallyX Championship and the CrossCar Junior category—where he claimed a runner-up title in his very first campaign at that level—Peetu “Ice Cream” Piira once again made headlines last weekend during the opening round of the Finnish Ice Racing Championship.
Competing for the first time in an official event at the wheel of a full-fledged race car, the 14-year-old Finn wasted little time getting to grips with his Toyota MR2 run by Moottero Racing and team owner Tero Tukiainen.
“Obviously, the car is completely different from what I’m used to in CrossCar. The wheelbase is much longer, and you have to adopt a driving technique that has very little in common with CrossCar,” Piira explained.
He needed just a four-hour test session to fully understand the subtleties of his new machine.
“Testing went really well. We had no issues at all and didn’t need to make any setup changes. I’m not entirely sure what to expect. I just hope I can keep improving, gain more experience, and not finish last,” Piira joked ahead of his first competitive weekend against seasoned adult drivers.
And the young Finn clearly rose to the challenge, securing two second-place finishes in the Super Saloon category (featuring cars fitted with long studs), along with two fifth-place results in the class using shorter studs.
Supported by Mika Liimatainen and Toyota MR2 owner Tero Tukiainen, Peetu Piira delivered an impressive overall performance.
“It’s very easy to work with Mika and Tero. They’re both really nice and gave me great advice on driving and car behaviour during testing. I’m surprised at how well this first weekend went. Initially, our only strategy was for me to get used to racing,” Piira said.
Held over two weekends and comprising four races in total, the Finnish Ice Racing Championship will conclude in Ylivieska on February 21–22.
“I managed to fight with the adults, which I didn’t expect. I had a bad start in the opening races, but I was able to fight back to second place thanks to my driving,” he explained, before reflecting on the difficulties he encountered in the category requiring shorter studs.
“My starts didn’t really work with the shorter studs. I got stuck in the ruts and struggled for traction. Driving in the powder snow also made visibility very difficult. I could hardly see anything,” he added.
One thing is certain: Peetu Piira will head into the final round of the winter season with significantly higher ambitions.
“From now on, the goal is to fight for the title on the ice in Ylivieska,” concluded the young driver, who had already emerged as one of the standout performers in the RallyX Championship in 2025.