Meunier ‘won’t back off’ in Euro RX3 title showdown
After narrowing his deficit to arch-rival Rytis Gurklys with victory on home soil last time out at Lohéac, Julien Meunier has vowed to go all guns blazing into this weekend’s 2026 Euro RX3 season finale at Lousada (12-13 September), as the pace-setting pair prepare to do battle for the coveted crown.
Back-to-back triumphs in the opening two rounds in Latvia and Hungary propelled Meunier into an early championship lead, but an electrical issue in Sweden and a penalty in Ireland swung the momentum firmly in favour of fellow Audi driver, Gurklys.
Heading into round five of the campaign in France, the local hero knew he needed to respond – and respond he most certainly did. Despite finding himself immediately on the back foot when he discovered an issue with his car on the eve of the event that left him unsure whether he would even be able to compete, the KMS by Meunier Competition crew dug deep to turn the situation around.
After topping the intermediate classification – three spots ahead of Gurklys – Meunier battled back from losing the lead on the opening lap of his Semi-Final to secure pole position for the all-important Final. Having judiciously conserved his best tyres, the Pont-de-Ruan native then exploited that advantage to dominate the weekend’s biggest points-paying race, celebrating his third success of the season on his 20th birthday courtesy of a commanding display.
The result – achieved mere moments after his elder brother, Damien, had won the French Championship’s Supercar Final and in front of a huge and enthusiastic partisan crowd – slashed the gap at the summit of the title standings from 28 points to just ten, with 68 remaining in play in Portugal.
“What a weekend!” reflected Meunier, already twice a national champion at Super1600 level. “It started really badly and the pace wasn’t there at first, but we worked hard and improved our speed a lot throughout, so big thanks to the whole team.
“We were missing a bit again at the starts, although in the Final, it was perfect. Damien crossed the finish line to win his race as I was warming up my tyres. It was really hard to stay focused after that, but I said to myself, ‘Damien did it, so now you need to do it, too!’
“The atmosphere afterwards on the podium was insane, with everybody singing the National Anthem. It was an awesome day that I will remember all my life. Everything is possible now, and I’ll be pushing as hard as I can [in Portugal]. I’m up for the fight, and I promise I won’t back off until the chequered flag!”
Gurklys endured a more challenging time of things in France, struggling from the outset and finding himself the innocent victim of a first corner clash in Q3. Just fourth in the post-Heats ranking, the Lithuanian seized the initiative in his Semi-Final only for a couple of mistakes to cost him the win to countryman, Audrius Kragas.
From the second row of the grid in the Final, the NG Racing Team teenager – last year’s championship runner-up – then found himself tucked up in traffic, limiting him to a frustrated fifth place at the chequered flag.
“The weekend was hard from the start,” Gurklys mused, “because we had a bad grid position for Q1 and could only finish seventh. In Q2, we were stuck behind some slower cars and then we had the crash in Q3, which was one of the biggest problems we faced. After that, I got caught behind Nicolas Geleyns in the Final, which cost me time.
“Now, the points gap is much lower, which will make things harder [at Lousada]. I’m not the biggest fan of the track, but it will certainly be exciting for the fans!”
