European Rally Championship manager Iain Campbell has confirmed a warm welcome awaits in the series, should Lancia greenlight an Ypsilon Rally2 in the future.
Let’s be honest, this is by no means a surprise. The world of rallying is uniformly rooting for the return of a Martini-liveried Lancia of some description. And Campbell’s no different.
“Could you imagine,” he replied to the question from DirtFish, “the support for a factory Lancia in the European Rally Championship. Naturally, it would have to be in the right color scheme, but yes, of course, we would absolutely welcome Lancia to the ERC. The heritage that sits behind the Lancia name is just incredible, it’s a brand that’s part of the very fabric of the sport – in just the same way that the European Rally Championship is.”
In its confirmation that a return to rallying being a work in progress, Lancia was very clear to DirtFish that it was to the sport – not to the World Rally Championship. That’s not to say a WRC program wouldn’t follow, but any commitment would be about putting a toe back in the water – and the sport’s second tier would be the highest level for now.
In terms of competition, ERC couldn’t be better for a new Rally2 manufacturer. Next week’s Rally Hungary being a case in point.
Campbell continued: “We have every Rally2 manufacturer represented in Hungary. Now Toyota’s with us, that’s six different makes and 28 Rally2 cars. That’s a very strong start to the season.”
