Ford Revives WRC Factory Team For Divisive WRC27 Revamp

The Blue Oval's push into international motorsport is getting a little larger. Ford Racing announced Thursday that it will return as a full factory team in the FIA World Rally Championship, beginning with the 2028 season. The effort won't be a from-scratch entry, as the Detroit manufacturer will bolster its existing relationship with the M-Sport World Rally Team. Despite its current F1 power unit collaboration with Red Bull Racing, its factory program in the Dakar-focused World Rally-Raid Championship and its upcoming Le Mans Hypercar program, Ford somehow had more room in its overseas racing plate.

Since Ford's withdrawal from the WRC in 2012, M-Sport has independently built and run Ford models in the championship. The British team was the natural partner for a factory return, considering that their partnership stretches back to 1997. However, the transition to a full factory effort won't happen overnight. M-Sport will contest the 2027 and 2028 seasons with Fiesta-based Rally2 cars, taking up the Ford Racing moniker in the later year. In 2029, the team will compete with a new WRC27 car based on an upcoming European Ford model. Mark Rushbrook, Ford Racing's global director, said:

"As we celebrate 125 years of Ford Racing, our 50-year legacy in the WRC stands out as one of our proudest because of its direct connection to the fun and exciting cars that came from that. We can't wait to compete again in rally racing in 2028 and beyond."

As the WRC27 name implies, it's the new technical regulations coming into force for the 2027 season. With only three manufacturers and rallying's biggest stars only competing part-time, the WRC's competitive landscape is teetering between bleak and underwhelming. The FIA hoped to attract new entrants and spice up the field by crafting a much cheaper ruleset. WRC27 cars must meet a $388,000 budget cap, and the registration fee was halved to around $247,000. To reduce confusion and avoid dating the ruleset, the WRC will retain the Rally1 name for its top-category cars.

Toyota is the only manufacturer opting to run a Rally1 at launch in 2027. As mentioned earlier, Ford is entering a Rally1 car in 2029. Hyundai won't confirm if it will continue competing in the WRC. No truly new manufacturers have publicly hinted at interest in joining the championship. As a stop-gap measure, Rally2 cars fitted with upgrade kits will be allowed to compete in the top class.

There is some potential magic on the other side of this rough transition. The WRC27 rules allow for Independent constructors to build their own tube frames, buy a powertrain from a competing manufacturer, and drape a silhouette body of their own design over the chassis. Coupes, sedans, hatchbacks, and even SUVs could compete against each other in the WRC as long as there are manufacturers to buy engines from.