Rallying has long been a proving ground for makers of hot hatches. Peugeot, Renault, Ford, Citroen, Suzuki, Vauxhall, Skoda, Fiat – over the years they have all contested hatchbacks in various forms, with spin-off performance models and special editions hitting the showrooms as a result. Well, there’s now talk of both Abarth and Volkswagen eyeing up the top-level championship, the WRC.
Abarth have been showing an interest, but are waiting for technical regulations to be decided before making their decision. If they were to join the WRC it would almost certainly be in a version of their Grande Punto, and success on the WRC circuit would bring some much needed publicity and kudos to the Abarth name.
Volkswagen are also considering the move, having sent their motorsport director to Rally Finland to talk to officials and team bosses. The chances are that they would compete with the Golf, so maybe that would lead to some special edition GTIs in the future!
