Ford Puma to compete in WRC next year

M-Sport Ford World Rally Team has announced that it will retire its Ford Fiesta WRC car at the end of the season and replace it with a race-going version of the Ford Puma small SUV that will feature an advanced new hybrid powertrain.

Making its debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, the former Ford-backed WRC team confirmed the Ford Puma Rally1 racer would be powered by the current Fiesta's 1.6-litre turbocharged petrol engine, but with the addition of a new 100kW electric motor that will be fed power by a small 3.9kWh battery.

In 2022, the WRC will also run sustainable fossil-free synthetic fuel.

Unveiled at the world-famous British hill climb, over the coming days the Puma Rally1 development car will demonstrate its new powertrain with current WRC driver Adrian Fourmaux and test driver Matthew Wilson.

M-Sport boss Malcolm Wilson said: “The new era of WRC cars is one of the biggest technological advancements in WRC to date. The introduction of the hybrid means that the cars will be more powerful than ever whilst also directly reflecting the powertrains within their road-going counterparts.

"The switch to the Puma is very exciting, with the name already having rally heritage. The car looks fantastic and I cannot wait to see it at the start line of the famous Monte Carlo Rally in early 2022."

Back in the early 2000s, the original small Puma coupe was campaigned in the junior WRC and won various national series.

Once introduced, the Puma Rally1 will be raced for at least three seasons, competing against the Toyota Yaris and the Hyundai i20 N.