Rally

Adrien Fourmaux believes his struggles for pace at the Central European Rally can be attributed to a mystery issue that his M-Sport World Rally Championship team will investigate.Fourmaux has been one the WRC’s form drivers this year but has strangely been off the pace on this weekend’s asphalt roads, which yielded a WRC2 victory for the Frenchman last year.Fourmaux completed Friday’s six ...Keep readingView the full article

Thierry Neuville extended his Central European Rally lead over Toyota’s Sebastien Ogier to edge another step closer to sealing a maiden World Rally Championship title.Neuville produced an impressive drive through six tricky asphalt stages held in the Czech Republic to increase his advantage over the eight-time world champion to 6.4s.The Hyundai driver took the rally lead in stage five, the third ...Keep readingView the full article

World Rally Championship title favourite Thierry Neuville overhauled Toyota’s Sebastien Ogier to move into the lead at the Central European Rally on Friday morning. The Hyundai driver, who has the chance to seal a maiden world title this weekend, completed the morning’s three slippery Czech asphalt stages with a 2.7s advantage over overnight leader Ogier. Hyundai’s Ott Tanak held third ...Keep readingView the full article

Rally Chile stewards have dismissed an FIA petition to re-examine an allocated time that helped Yohan Rossel to WRC2 victory following a hearing at the Central European Rally. Event stewards originally deemed that WRC2 championship leader Oliver Solberg had hindered Rossel during a fog-affected stage 11 (Lota 2) last month and subsequently knocked 40s from the latter’s stage time. Solberg ...Keep readingView the full article

Sebastien Ogier opened up a slender early lead over World Rally Championship title favourite Thierry Neuville after the opening two stages of the Central European Rally. The eight-time world champion made an impressive start to the 18-stage three-country asphalt rally to lead Neuville by 0.9s. The latter can seal a maiden world title this weekend. Ogier kicked off proceedings by winning the ...Keep readingView the full article

Thierry Neuville doesn’t need any advice and knows “what he needs to do” to take a maiden World Rally Championship title this weekend, according to Hyundai boss Cyril Abiteboul. Neuville heads into this weekend's penultimate round of the season in Central Europe knowing he will claim rallying’s ultimate prize if he extends his 29-point lead beyond 30 points.Hyundai team-mate Ott Tanak is ...Keep readingView the full article

World Rally Championship teams have expressed their thoughts regarding the possibility of a last-minute change to remove hybrid power from Rally1 cars for next season.It appears there is a strong chance the FIA could decide to abandon hybrid power from the WRC’s top-flight class in a move that has been triggered by a mid-season change to the hybrid unit user guide from control supplier Compact ...Keep readingView the full article

M-Sport's driver line-up for the 2025 World Rally Championship is "totally up in the air" as speculation mounts around the future of its current lead driver Adrien Fourmaux.The Ford squad often makes its moves in the driver market late into the year and this season is no different as it plans to field two Ford Puma Rally1 cars next year.The decision to promote Fourmaux back to its Rally1 programme ...Keep readingView the full article

Thierry Neuville insists his first focus is on delivering a "consistent run" at this week's Central European Rally as the Hyundai driver closes in on a maiden World Rally Championship crown.Neuville heads into the WRC's penultimate round, spread across the asphalt roads in the Czech Republic, Austria and Germany, with a 29-point lead over nearest rival and team-mate Ott Tanak.The Belgian will ...Keep readingView the full article

The WRC2 title fight could be set for another twist following confirmation that a previously rejected protest from Oliver Solberg will be reheard by Rally Chile stewards.A petition led by FIA road sport director Andrew Wheatley has resulted in the case regarding a notional time being awarded to Solberg's title rival and Rally Chile WRC2 winner Yohan Rossel to be reviewed.Solberg lodged a protest ...Keep readingView the full article

Takamoto Katsuta has set out goals after being benched by Toyota for Rally Chile, as he prepares for his World Rally Championship return at next week’s Central European Rally.Katsuta rejoins Toyota's line-up after it temporarily dropped its full-time driver for the visit to Chile last month following a rough run of results.After undergoing a reset, the 31-year-old jumped back behind the wheel of ...Keep readingView the full article

Skoda Motorsport has unveiled an all-new electric racing car concept that has taken inspiration and technology from its World Rally Championship Rally2 car.Based on the road going Enyaq SUV, the new Enyaq RS Race has even in development since 2023 with the aim to create an EV race car concept that closely matches the handling of Skoda Fabia RS Rally2.The car can generate 340 horsepower and a top ...Keep readingView the full article

Full electric, hybrid and internal combustion engine powertrains remain as options for the World Rally Championship’s 2027 regulations, according to FIA technical director Xavier Mestelan Pinon.The FIA has been working for more than 18 months to devise the future direction of the Rally1 and Rally2 WRC classes and is expected top present its 2027 regulations at the World Motor Sport Council in ...Keep readingView the full article

Rally Croatia organisers have announced that they have succeeded in securing the government guarantees necessary to prepare for a return to the World Rally Championship.The asphalt event made its WRC debut in 2021 quickly becoming a regular hosting four editions of the event before losing its place on the 2025 calendar.The 14-round 2025 WRC calendar was announced in July with three new rallies ...Keep readingView the full article

Factory Ducati MotoGP rider Enea Bastianini is set to swap two wheels for four at the Rallylegend festival this weekend. The seven-time motorcycle premier-class race winner is set to pilot a Group B Audi Quattro S1 at the 22nd edition of the four-day celebration of rallying past and present held in San Marino.Bastianini, who finished fourth in last weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix, will share ...Keep readingView the full article

Kalle Rovanpera says he feels “recharged” and ready to make a full-time return to the World Rally Championship next year after exploring his motorsport horizons this season.The two-time World Rally champion made a surprise decision to conduct a part-time WRC campaign this year, stating a desire to scale back temporarily following his second consecutive world title last year.The factory Toyota ...Keep readingView the full article

Martins Sesks says he has “zero idea” where his future lies in the World Rally Championship after impressing in three Rally1 outings this year.The 2023 European Rally Championship runner-up has outlined his rising star status following a trio of head-turning appearances in rallying’s top tier thanks to a programme with M-Sport-Ford, partially funded by the WRC Promoter.Sesks’ reputation as ...Keep readingView the full article

Sami Pajari remains part of Toyota's discussions regarding its 2025 World Rally Championship driver plans after the Finn impressed management at Rally Chile.Pajari was handed a surprise second career Rally1 outing with the Japanese brand at last weekend's gravel round in South America in place of regular driver Takamoto Katsuta, who will rejoin the team at this month's Central European ...Keep readingView the full article

Fernando Alonso is much more likely to return to the Dakar Rally than the Indy 500 in the future, but insisted his "only priority" is to grab a third Formula 1 world championship with Aston Martin.Alonso signed a new contract earlier this year that keeps him at Aston Martin's F1 team until at least the 2026 season, including an ambassadorial deal that is set to keep him tied to the manufacturer ...Keep readingView the full article

Mattias Ekstrom will join Ford’s factory programme in the Dakar Rally in 2025 after ending a 23-year stint with Audi.The Swede will contest next year’s Dakar in a works-entered Ford Raptor T1+, teaming up with Nani Roma, Mitch Guthrie Jr and fellow ex-Audi driver Carlos Sainz Sr in a four-strong line-up.This would be Ekstrom's fifth straight appearance in the world’s most prestigious ...Keep readingView the full article