Following Carl Svedlund’s title triumph last season, Finland now looks set to reclaim the CrossCar Junior crown. With five victories from six races and a 43-point lead over his nearest rival, Iivari Männistö will head into the two Nysum rounds in a particularly strong position.
The provisional standings reflect Finland’s dominance in the category. Finnish drivers occupy six of the top seven places, with Norway’s Sebastian Isaksætre the only driver to break their stranglehold by claiming fifth. After Mikael Uitto’s back-to-back titles in 2022 and 2023, Männistö has never been closer to adding his name to the CrossCar Junior roll of honour.
At this stage of the season, Männistö has opened up a clear advantage over the rest of the field. Third overall in 2025 behind Carl Svedlund and Peetu Piira, he has moved to another level since the start of the 2026 campaign.
The Finn has claimed five victories in six races and finished on the podium every time. After winning both rounds at Tierp, he added a third victory at Honkajoki before finishing runner-up to Peetu Matalamäki in the following race.
That second place remains his only non-winning result to date. At Älvsbyn, Männistö immediately resumed his charge by sweeping both races and collecting the maximum 60 points.
With 172 points from a possible 180, the Finn has scored 95.6% of the maximum. That level of consistency has allowed him to turn an already comfortable advantage into a substantial championship cushion.
After Honkajoki, Männistö led Peetu Matalamäki by 30 points, Alex Anttila by 31 and Jere Huuhka by 32. Following the two Älvsbyn races, those margins have increased to 43, 45 and 50 points respectively.
Matalamäki nevertheless limited the damage by finishing second in both Swedish races. His 47-point haul keeps him second in the championship on 129 points. Alex Anttila sits just two points behind after scoring 46, while Jere Huuhka remains within striking distance on 122.
Behind Männistö, the fight for second place remains extremely tight. Only seven points separate second-placed Matalamäki from Huuhka in fourth. Sebastian Isaksætre occupies fifth with 112 points, although his deficit to Männistö grew from 35 to 60 over the Älvsbyn weekend.
With four races remaining, the championship is far from over. The two Nysum rounds will offer a combined 60 points across 1 and 2 August, before the final two encounters take place at the Estering one week later. With 120 points still available, Männistö’s rivals still have a mathematical chance of turning the championship around, but the challenge is becoming increasingly difficult.
Nysum will mark the beginning of the final run-in before the title contenders head to the Estering. Männistö will now look to maintain the exceptional form he has displayed since Tierp. His rivals, meanwhile, can no longer afford to lose ground if they are to keep the championship fight alive.