How M-Sport is at the hub of the new rallying ladder
For British firm M-Sport, the FIA’s
Rally Sporting Pyramid is the perfect shop window for its Cumbria and Krakow-built products.
The company is active at all levels from Rally5 to the new-for-2022 Rally1 and is currently the only manufacturer present in the Rally3 market.
It took part in the initial discussions with the FIA – along with several other unnamed makes – and therefore got the chance to have an input on the rulebook, particularly when it came to keeping costs under control.
“It’s a really exciting project and a very interesting car,” M-Sport Poland head Maciej Woda says of the Rally3 category. “We have been working with the FIA for a number of years and we have a very good relationship. Rally3 was a completely new concept and honestly I can’t wait to see a lot of these cars on the stages. In fact, a lot of people have been waiting a long time for this car.
“Some people see it as a replacement for the old Group N cars, like the Mitsubishis and the Subarus, but we never approached this project in this way. In my opinion we needed a car for young drivers to make the step from two-wheel-drive Rally4 cars to the very fast and competitive Rally2 cars because the step is very big now.
“The Rally3 will be faster than the Rally4, not much more power but more torque and it’s easier to drive is the comment we’ve received from a lot of drivers who have tested it.
“It’s also proven to be robust from the testing we’ve done, it’s costeffective and fun to drive.”
Jerome Roussel, the FIA’s regional rally boss, said: “We believe very strongly in the Rally3 concept and we share the same passion as M-Sport when it comes to helping young drivers.”