Podcast: What could rallying’s green future hold?

Three past WRC stars discuss the state of rallying today, and what lies ahead with alternative energies

Hyundai EV rally car _action4 by Graeme Murray Photography

In the latest episode of SPIN, The Rally Pod, DirtFish’s Colin Clark embarks on a quest to discover what three big names in rallying over the last two decades think about what could happen in the next two.

First, he speaks to 2016 Rally Argentina winner Hayden Paddon, who may not be part of Hyundai’s World Rally Championship line-up anymore but is leading the development of possibly the most exciting car to ever bear the Korean brand’s name. The Hyundai Kona EV is an all-electric rally car that has been designed, built, tested and now shown in public by a small but ambitious crew in New Zealand.

Paddon explains his vision of rallying’s future, his ambitions for Paddon Rallysport and his country’s place in global motorsport, and the attitude down under towards the electrification of automation.

Clark is then joined by DirtFish’s senior staff writer David Evans to quiz David Richards, the chairman of famous rallying brand Prodrive and Britain’s motorsport governing body Motorsport UK. The trio debate whether Paddon’s electrical success could compete on the other side of the globe, how to engage the next generation of rally fans, and Britain’s rallying future.

Finally, there’s Gerard Quinn, the man who was behind Ford’s involvement in rallying until the end of 2019, who explains what all of the above means when it actually comes down to putting money on the table for the manufacturers, the rallies and the fans. It’s a must-listen.

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