Josh McErlean and Jon Armstrong both retired from the Monte on the penultimate stage
Photography by M-Sport
Words by Luke Barry
The last time the Ford squad failed to score a manufacturer point was Rally GB 2001, where Colin McRae and Carlos Sainz crashed and Mark Higgins was withdrawn.
McErlean’s Monte had already been troubled as he retired from both Thursday and Friday’s legs, but it got worse on Sunday as he understeered on one of the final corners of SS16 and hit an Armco barrier.
The accident completely destroyed the front-left corner, so while he got the car to the end of the stage, McErlean will not go any further.
“We got caught out in the slush and understeered into an Armco,” said a despondent McErlean. “I’m sorry to the whole team, it’s been a disaster of a weekend.”
Armstrong’s rally had been far brighter, peaking with a third fastest time on Thursday evening that briefly had him third overall. He since settled into sixth place, but retired very early on the same stage that caught McErlean.
Grégoire Munster also retired his Ford Puma Rally1 on Sunday with a technical problem on the road section, but he was not registered for manufacturer points anyway.
Words:Luke Barry
Tags: Jon Armstrong, Josh McErlean, M-Sport, Monte Carlo Rally, Monte Carlo Rally 2026, WRC, WRC 2026
Publish Date January 25, 2026 DirtFish 
https://dirtfish-editorial.s3-accelerate.amazonaws.com/2026/01/6BQAJvHP-WRC_MON_26_J_MCERLEAN_676-780x520.jpg January 25, 2026
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