2 into 4 will go

Racecar takes an in-depth look at M-Sport’s latest iteration of the R2 Fiesta, the Rally4

- Lawrence Butcher

With the implementation of the FIA’s new rally class structure, comprising Rally1 through 5 groups (where Rally1 is the new naming for WRCs, Rally2 replacing R5 etc.), M-Sport was first out of the blocks with a Rally4 version of its Fiesta in early 2020.

M-Sport is unique within the WRC. Though it has a degree of manufacturer backing from Ford, it is not a ‘works’ outfit in the way Toyota and Hyundai are. Instead, under the direction of founder Malcolm Wilson, M-Sport earns its living building rally cars (alongside an increasing number of projects for other OEMs, such as Bentley GT3). With rising costs in Rally1 / WRC, it sells very few of the top-flight cars, instead relying on sales of its R5 and R2 machinery.

In essence, Rally4 is an updated set of R2 regulations and for M-Sport, the Mk8-based Rally4 Fiesta is an upgrade of its latest R2 car, homologated in 2019. The company was the first to realise the potential of running 1.0-litre, turbocharged engines in the class (as opposed to naturally aspirated 1600cc) when it released the Mk7 Fiesta R2 in 2015. Since then, it has refined the package to improve performance and keep abreast of regulatory developments.

Summing up the latest tweaks, Maciej Woda, who heads up M-Sport Poland where the R2 / Rally4 cars are built, comments: ‘The new [2019] R2 was based on the updated regulations, which allowed us to use a different turbocharger [from the OEM road car unit]. We made a lot of changes to the car, so that version was almost entirely new. There are now some small changes to the regulations with the arrival of Rally4 [compared to R2] that, for example, allow for bonnet vents to aid cooling.’