It’s the news our world has wanted to report for more than 30 years. And now Lancia has confirmed to DirtFish that it is actively working on a return to rallying.
The Italian firm departed the sport at the end of 1991 – with its return a source of speculation almost every year since. Last month’s confirmation that Lancia’s performance brand HF would return for an all-electric version of the Ypsilon added further weight to the speculation.
Contacted on Wednesday, Lancia told DirtFish: “As we are seeing these days, there is a great love and passion surrounding motorsport, with many fans who have been following us for a long time.
The Lancia Delta remains the most successful car in WRC history – yet the brand's story in rallying ended abruptly three decades ago
“We are working on the return of Lancia to rally, knowing that it is a significant marketing lever. This means that we will return to the world of rally only if the return on investment meets our expectations.”
The expectation is that Lancia could take over Stellantis stablemate Citroën’s C3 Rally2 program. The Parisian arm of the group has vast recent experience in the world championship, starting at the top with customer racing manager Didier Clements.
Clements was one of the masterminds of Citroën’s generation of world championship domination with Sébastien Loeb.
