Lia Block to make rallying return at Lake Superior

F1 Academy driver Lia Block will return to rallying at the Lake Superior Performance Rally in Michigan on October 11-12, replacing Brandon Semenuk at the Subaru Motorsports USA team.

Block won the Open 2WD class in the American Rally Association National series last season before transitioning to circuit racing in the all-female Formula 1 feeder series with support from the Williams F1 team. She took her best finishes of the season so far with a pair of fourth place finishes in Singapore on the weekend of September 21-22.

“Excited is an understatement for the feeling going into LSPR,” said Block. “Subaru and Vermont SportsCar have given me such a cool opportunity to compete at a rally in their top-level car.”

LSPR will be Block's first event in the top-tier of American rallying, and she will drive the latest Subaru WRX STI at the event alongside Semenuk's regular co-driver Keaton Williams. Her father, Ken Block, drove the car's previous generation in 2021, winning the very same event – his first win there since 2006.

Block's teammates will be Travis Pastrana and Rhianon Gelsomino. Block made her Nitrocross Group E debut replacing Block at Glen Helen Raceway in 2023, while her 2023 rear-wheel-drive title triumph came with Gelsomino in the co-driver's seat when Pastrana took a year out from stage competition.

“Rallying has always been my home. It's my roots,” Block said. “My family and I have such a special history with this team, I wouldn’t want this milestone to be with anyone else. It’s been a while since I’ve competed in a rally car, but I’m looking forward to the challenge of learning my way around this insanely fast, top-level car.

“My goal for this upcoming weekend is to have fun, go fast, and finish the rally strong and comfortable.”

Aside from F1 Academy and rallying, Block has also competed in Nitrocross, where she raced in September's season opener in Richmond, VA for the Dodge-backed Dreyer & Reinbold JC team, and Extreme E.