The American is committing to rallying again after two years in circuit racing - and wants to go all the way
Photography by William Conley / ARA
Words by David Evans, DirtFish Head of Media
F1 Academy race winner Lia Block will return to rallying next season, ending her two-year stint with Williams Racing.
The 19-year-old talked exclusively with DirtFish about her decision to quit the high-profile Formula 1 support series in favor of a return to the sport where she cut her teeth and made history by becoming the youngest person ever to win an American national title.
Block confirmed her decision with Williams Racing on Monday, following the final F1 Academy race of the season in Las Vegas.
“I’m coming home,” she smiled. “These past few years, obviously I took a break from rally and off-road and went to the big boy world of F1. It’s certainly been an experience and I’ve learned so much. But ultimately, it’s not the world I necessarily feel like I belong in. And rally has always been home. It’s where I’ve had the most success and the most fun.
“My decision for coming back, it’s been a hard one and it’s something I’ve contemplated for a while. But it all comes down to, what do I love the most? And what will I enjoy doing for the rest of my career? My answer is rally. And I think it’s kind of always been that way.”
Block’s second season in F1 Academy has delivered success with a maiden podium in Zandvoort and a maiden win in Singapore. But a mid-season visit to Kentucky’s Boone Forest Rally reminded Block what she was missing as she won her class and took a podium finish overall aboard a Ford Fiesta Rally3.
Block added: “My schedule has been so, so busy with F1 Academy and Boone was like the only other race I could fit in my calendar. But I just had so much fun there. Being in a Rally3, four-wheel drive, but in a respectable power range. It just really brought me back to my roots. I just enjoyed it so much, not to mention, the success of winning my class and being third overall, that was all great. But, just the raw enjoyment and putting in the work and doing recce and all the testing and then to have that success, it just felt like I never left in a way.”
Working with Derek Dauncey, one of world rallying’s most respected figures and the man who helped Lia’s father Ken build his rallying and off-road career, Block is now looking at options and talking to teams about her next step in rallying.
“Coming back to rally, I want to go as far as I can and that means pursuing the WRC championship and pursuing a world championship. I’ve set my sights on that, but obviously it’s now about setting those small goals to eventually get to that big one.
“Honestly for me, I just look to the future and think about how do I prepare for that? And obviously I think that’s going over to Europe and running JWRC or whatever is in the cards for next year to eventually start that path. Obviously I’ve announced this so late, so it’s difficult to try and find the specific seat that I will be racing in next year, but I have high hopes to go and do a bunch of the recces and just be as prepared as possible for the next coming years.”
Despite her decision to walk away from circuit racing, Block’s adamant the last two seasons have been good for her.
“I wanted to try open-wheel racing,” she said. “I feel I’ve done every discipline in motorsport so far in my career, to be honest, and I didn’t want to leave that page blank in a way. I wanted to try it and just give a shot and I’m really, really glad I did. You know, I wouldn’t trade these two years for anything. And the experiences I’ve had and the people I’ve met have been so valuable.
“I think the way I’ve grown over the past two years, matured as a driver and as a person, I think all of that mental strength I will definitely be able to carry into whatever I do next year. Especially coming off of winning a championship in the US and going to a discipline I had zero clue about and having to work my way up back to the top and learn so much. That mentality of the small gains means so much, and just taking everything as a learning opportunity going forward will definitely help me when I’m starting again in rally.”
Words:David Evans
Tags: Lia Block
Publish Date November 24, 2025 DirtFish 
https://dirtfish-editorial.s3-accelerate.amazonaws.com/2025/11/uSMoGFoQ-wConley_Boone_ARA-78-780x520.jpg November 24, 2025
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