RFEDA’s Rallye Team Spain: a dream journey to ERC glory
Rallye Team Spain was founded and launched in April 2017 as a promotion programme for young rally competitors by the RFEDA (Royal Spanish Automobile Federation). Five years later, for its champion crew Efrén Llarena and Sara Fernández, it’s a dream come true.
The pair won, at the end of the inaugural year, the opening season of the Beca Junior R2 championship, which promoted them on the international scene to the ERC3 Junior championship for the first time as Rallye Team Spain competitors.
The potential and skills demonstrated by the duo, with the support of the Spanish ASN, gave Llarena and Fernández the opportunity to maintain a steep curve of progress during 2019. It was an unforgettable year for Rallye Team Spain: first the Spaniards were crowned the ERC3 Junior champions, before also clinching the ERC3 title.
The double win pushed the duo into the main category of the FIA European Rally Championship – a genuine opportunity in Rally Team Spain's 2020 campaign -with Llarena and Fernández gaining further experience and claiming their first podium win in a Rally2 car.
In 2021, Fernández made history when she became the first female co-driver champion in the history of the ERC in a thrilling title showdown in Rally Islas Canarias - an inspiring achievement for all her countrywomen entered in regional and national championships, as well as for her partner Llarena.
The Spanish pairing has done a perfect season in the ERC this year, first by taking the laurels in Azores, where they scored the first international win in Rallye Team Spain’s track record, and delivering steady performances in the following rounds of the championship.
With consistency as a key success factor, Llarena and Fernández sealed the 2022 FIA European Rally Championship driver and co-driver titles end of August, ahead of Barum Czech Rally Zlín - a remarkable achievement for the Rallye Team Spain programme, five years only after the crew started to build up their career from scratch in a R2 car. This is proof that, with passion, talent and hard work, dreams can come true!
More information about the Rallye Team Spain programme on RFEDA’s website.