Tag Archives: World Rally Championship (WRC)

Mini rethinks WRC program

Mini has announced a change in approach to participation in the World Rally Championship (WRC) which was initially set to be a full-works entry into this year’s championship under the auspices of Prodrive. Instead, Mini’s future participation in the WRC will be as a works-supported private team, to be known as WRC Team MINI Portugal, run by Prodrive. Prodrive will also be responsible for building Mini John Cooper Works WRC vehicles for private rally teams around the world and for providing support to those teams.

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Fiat Abarth to make WRC return?

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Fiat Grande Punto Abarth Looks like things are hotting up at the World Rally Championship (WRC)! We’ve seen Mini make a reasonable return to rallying recently, and we’ve also received confirmation that Volkswagen (VW) are to return to the WRC in 2013 with the VW Polo R. Now we’re hearing rumors that Fiat’s resurrection of the Abarth badge will be more than just a performance badge with the Fiat Grande Punto Abarth also slated to enter the WRC in 2013 or 2014! Not that the Fiat Grande Punto Abarth has shied away from the dirt tracks; in fact the Fiat Grande Punto Abarth has been having a very successful campaign in the European Rally Championship (ERC), having won the Driver’s Championship in 2006, 2009 and 2010! It will also mark the return of the Fiat Abarth to the WRC since the early 1980s when the Fiat Group switched from the Fiat 131 Abarth to the Lancia Delta.

Mini returns to Rallying

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Earlier this week, Mini made it’s debut appearance in the 2011 World Rally Championship (WRC)! In July last year BMW announced that the Prodrive developed Mini Countryman with a BMW Motorsport 1.6-Liter, four-cylinder turbocharged engine would compete in selected events at this year’s WRC before competing the full championship from 2012 onwards. Prodrive has been working on the MINI Countryman WRC since early 2009 and has significant experience in Rallying, having run the Rothmans Porsche Rally Team in Regional and National rally events in 1984, and the Rothmans Motul BMW team in the WRC in 1987. Their greatest success was with Subaru with whom they won the 1995 Manufacturers’ World Rally Championship and the Driver’s Championship with the late Colin McRae! Prodrive helped Subaru to the Manufacturer’s Championship in 1996 and 1997 and also secured the 2001 Drivers Championship with the late Richard Burns and the 2003 Drivers Championship with Petter Solberg.

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WORKS Speed World Challenge Lancer

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WORKS Mitsubishi Lancer SWC Another performance car that made its U.S. debut at the Los Angeles International Auto Show this week was the all-new Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X. The next Lancer EVO X had made its world debut last month in Japan and features a new high-performance 2.0-liter turbocharged MIVEC engine.

Sharing the stand at the Los Angeles International Auto Show were two Mitsubishi Lancer rally cars, the 1981 Lancer 2000 Turbo and the 2005 Lancer World Rally Car (WRC 05), that represent the Lancer EVO X’s long rally heritage. However, a forth Lancer, the WORKS Speed World Challenge (SWC) Lancer represents the Mitsubishi Lancer EVO X’s assault on the race track!

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Fiat Grande Punto Abarth

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Fiat Grande Punto Abarth Esse-Esse Fiat recently resurrected the legendary Abarth badge when they displayed the Fiat Grande Punto Abarth at the Geneva Motor Show earlier this year. As you probably know, the Abarth badge has been synonymous with Fiat’s endeavors in the field of motorsport since the 1970s when it became part of the Fiat group. Previously, Abarth had been one of the most successful tuners in Italy. After its acquisition by Fiat, Abarth became the car manufacturer’s racing department and were responsible for Fiat’s rally cars, of which the Fiat 124 Abarth and the iconic Fiat 131 Abarth were most prominent. In fact the Fiat 131 Abarth won the Manufacturer’s World Rally Championship in 1977, 1978 and 1980, and won the Driver’s Championship with Markku Alén in 1978 and Walter Röhrl in 1980. In the 1980s Abarth became a performance badge for cars such as the like Fiat Ritmo Abarth 130 TC before disappearing in the 1990s.

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