The World Rally Championship has its first confirmed ‘constructor’ for the 2027 season, with former Citroën team principal Yves Matton jointly heading the development of Project Rally One.
The announcement of the new car, which is intended to be ready for the start of the 2027 season, comes just one week on from the FIA World Motor Sport Council’s confirmation of a more inclusive constructor framework. In just over 12 months, the WRC will allow independent tuners to build and run cars alongside and against original equipment manufacturers in the race for the inaugural FIA WRC constructors’ crown.
Designed to the FIA’s all-new WRC27 regulations – which stipulate a tubular spaceframe safety cell, double wishbone suspension, four-wheel drive and a 1600cc turbocharged engine – the first Project Rally One chassis is complete with prototype assembly underway and the car’s first test set for spring next year.
Experienced motorsport engineer and co-founder of Project Rally One, Lionel Hansen, said: “The entry of Project Rally One to the FIA World Rally Championship is a hugely important moment for us. To be the first to present a new car for the WRC’s next era is something we are extremely proud of.
“The introduction of the WRC27 regulations gave us the opportunity to take the step into the championship. The new technical framework creates the right environment for independent projects like ours, allowing us to develop a car from the ground up and compete against manufacturers at the highest level.
“The progress we have already made gives us real confidence in the direction we are taking. With the chassis complete and the prototype now in assembly, we are in a strong position as we prepare for the first shakedown this spring and continue development towards the car’s debut.”
The car, which will have to meet the regulated €345,000 cost cap, is being developed with a particular focus on suspension and geometry optimisation, weight distribution and reliability. Once homologated, it will retain that status for the next 10 years.
FIA deputy president for sport Malcolm Wilson said the new car demonstrated WRC27 regulations were succeeding in the stated aim of lowering the barrier to WRC entry for tuners to compete against manufacturers.
“The arrival of Project Rally One is a significant moment for the FIA World Rally Championship,” he said. “It confirms that the move toward a more cost-effective and accessible technical framework is already generating new engagement with the sport. Attracting new entrants is essential for the long-term growth of the WRC, and it is encouraging to see other tuners preparing to compete alongside manufacturers.”
Four years in the making, FIA chief technical and safety officer Xavier Mestelan Pinon said the new rules were delivering on president Mohammed Ben Sulayem’s promise.
Mestelan Pinon said: “The vision for WRC27 was first laid out when FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem called for a regulatory framework that would reduce costs, broaden participation and ensure long-term stability for the FIA World Rally Championship. Over the past four years, we have worked to develop a regulatory framework that places safety, affordability, flexibility and accessibility at its heart, creating a formula that is attractive to new entrants to the championship.
The first Project Rally One chassis is complete with testing to begin in the spring
“The entry of Project Rally One to the FIA World Rally Championship is a clear indication that this vision is taking shape. By opening homologation to tuners and introducing a cost-effective long-term technical framework for the category, we have created an environment where tuners can enter the WRC on equal terms with manufacturers. Project Rally One illustrates exactly what this vision was designed to achieve, and it confirms that the new era of the FIA World Rally Championship is already beginning to deliver the growth and diversity the sport needs.”
WRC Promoter’s director of sport Peter Thul said the move demonstrated confidence in the series. He added: “The fact that this comes so soon on the back of the announcement of the WRC27 regulations confirms the appetite from the automotive world to be part of the pinnacle of rallying. It fills us with confidence that this will be just the first of many such announcements to come.
“We, as the promoter, are here to help Lionel [Hansen] and Yves [Matton] to reach their ambitions and we are certain that the mix of WRC27-homologated cars alongside the existing Rally2 cars will generate one of the deepest fields of competition in the WRC in recent memory.”
Ten of the new Project Rally One cars will need to be produced within 24 months of the homologation date, while Hansen and Matton must commit two cars to at least 50% of the WRC calendar in its first season of competition. From then on, at least 10 race-ready cars must be commercially available.
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