Three-Way Title Fight Ahead of the Electric Season Finale

The ADAC Opel Electric Rally Cup “powered by GSe” is heading for a thrilling finale.

At the ADAC Rallye Stemweder Berg, Dutch driver Fabian Kamermans celebrated his first-ever victory in the Opel Corsa Rally Electric, while championship leader Alex “Sito” Español managed to extend his lead slightly over Tom Heindrichs and Kilian Nierenz.

With a flawless drive and the perfect tyre choice, Kamermans and co-driver Stefan Müller took a commanding win after twelve special stages covering 108 kilometres, finishing 11.1 seconds ahead of Nierenz and Milena Raithel. The German crew narrowly held off Español and Borja Odriozola by just 1.7 seconds, allowing the Spaniard to increase his championship lead over Heindrichs by eight points.

For Tom Heindrichs and Jonas Schmitz, the event around Lübbecke proved challenging. After three consecutive victories, the Belgian duo finished fourth, keeping their title hopes alive but with a tougher task ahead for the season finale.

All Eyes on the Central European Rally

The championship battle now heads into its decisive round - the Central European Rally, held from October 16–19 as part of the FIA World Rally Championship.

Heading into the finale, Español leads Heindrichs by 12 points, with Nierenz 29 points behind — meaning three drivers still have a mathematical shot at the title. With a maximum of 35 points available, everything is still to play for.

“A Tough Weekend — But the Fight Isn’t Over Yet”

“It was a difficult rally for us,” Tom admitted. “I wasn’t feeling well this weekend and struggled with headaches, which also affected our preparation. But I’m not someone who looks for excuses. These long straight sections with tight junctions just aren’t my favourite type of stages — others are better there. Still, we’ve shown this year that we can dominate and win rallies, and that’s exactly the plan for the Central European Rally. Twelve points behind Sito is a lot, but I’ll focus on repeating last year’s victory. The rest is out of our hands.”

Top 3 Standings Before the Final Round

1. Español – 172 pts

2. Heindrichs – 160 pts

3. Nierenz – 143 pts

After three wins and a consistent season, the Belgian driver will head into the World Championship stage in Passau determined to fight for the crown in the world’s first all-electric one-make rally series.