According to the source, Lancia is planning a new return to the WRC, and the car manufacturer intends to launch the Ypsilon Rally2 car in 2026. Testing is already in full swing.
Lancia already has the Ypsilon Rally4 car on the market, but the introduction of a Rally2 model indicates the company’s larger-scale plans concerning the WRC.
The WRC’s technical regulations will change for the 2027 season, and the future top-class cars will correspond very closely to the Rally2 cars currently in use. It is therefore also possible that Lancia is considering a future return to the top category.
According to Rallye-Magazin, “everything now points to Lancia being present at next January’s Rallye Monte Carlo with two Rally2 cars.”
The pride of the Italians in their return is also already visible, as the manufacturer’s test car carries the legendary “HF Integrale” badge, which is strongly associated with the brand’s successful years in the WRC.
According to Rallye-Magazin, “tradition may also dictate driver choices.” Lancia is remembered from past decades as a team with Finnish drivers, and sources suggest that Finnish drivers could again be seen with Lancia.
Finnish rising star Tuukka Kauppinen has already competed this season with Lancia’s Rally4 car, but the article does not specifically mention any driver’s name as a potential option for Lancia. However, Rallye-Magazin strongly hints that the Italian manufacturer is interested in recruiting Finnish drivers for the team.
Lancia’s strategy for a long time – like many other car manufacturers – was to focus on electric cars, but now its strategy has changed. Like many other manufacturers, Lancia also intends in the future to invest more again in combustion engine cars – just as Citroën, which also belongs to the same Stellantis Group, is doing. The French manufacturer is already competing in the WRC in the WRC2 category..
Lancia last competed in the WRC during the 1970s and 80s, and still in the early 1990s before the manufacturer withdrew entirely from motorsport. Now, however, a return looks likely.
Video footage of Lancia’s testing has already been published. You can watch the testing video in the YouTube embed below or via this link.
Article updated on 2 September at 13:28. The piece previously stated incorrectly that Škoda was part of the Stellantis group, but of course it is Citroën, not Škoda.
