R5 (rallying)

R5
Motor racing formula
CategoryRally cars
Country or regionInternational
ChampionshipsWorld championships:
World Rally Championship-2
World Rally Championship-3
Regional championships:
African Rally Championship
Asia-Pacific Rally Championship
Codasur South American Rally Championship
European Rally Championship
Middle East Rally Championship
NACAM Rally Championship
various national championships
Inaugural season2012
StatusActive
The Škoda Fabia R5 is one of the most successful cars in the category.

In international rallying, R5 refers to a class of cars competing under Group R regulations. R5 regulations were introduced by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) in 2012 as a replacement for the Super 2000 class. In 2019 the FIA renamed the R5 specification ruleset to Group Rally2 as part of a wider plan to reorganise FIA championships and replace Group R with new Groups Rally.[1][2][3] Existing FIA homologated R5 cars remain eligible for any FIA Rally2 level competition, and non-homologated R5 or Rally2 cars should be accepted equally at national level where approved. R5/Rally2 cars are based on production cars and feature a 1600cc turbocharged petrol engine.

R5 cars are a step down from World Rally Cars in their power and performance. They are eligible to compete in the World Rally Championship and in a dedicated series known as the World Rally Championship-2. This championship is exclusively open to manufacturer and professional independent teams competing in R5 cars.[a] In 2020 and 2021, privateer entries in R5 cars contested the World Rally Championship-3.[5] R5 cars also compete in regional championships such as the European Rally Championship and national-level events such as the British Rally Championship.

List of R5 models

A Volkswagen Polo GTI R5 at the 2019 Rally Bohemia.

The following models are eligible to compete in the World Rally Championship and its support categories:

Manufacturer Car Debut Image
France Citroën Citroën C3 R5[6] 2018
Citroën DS3 R5[7] 2014
United Kingdom Ford[8] Ford Fiesta R5 2013
Ford Fiesta R5 Mk. II[8] 2019
South Korea Hyundai Hyundai i20 R5/NG i20 R5[9][10] 2016
France Peugeot Peugeot 208 T16 R5[7] 2014
Malaysia Proton Proton Iriz R5 2017
Czech Republic Škoda Škoda Fabia R5[11] 2015
Škoda Fabia R5 Evo[11] 2019
Germany Volkswagen Volkswagen Polo GTI R5[12] 2018
The following models are currently in development:
Japan Mitsubishi Mitsubishi Mirage R5.[13][b] Developed by Ralliart Sweden,[13] but was not eligible for FIA homologation as the project was not approved by Mitsubishi.
Japan Toyota Toyota Yaris R5[14]

Notes

  1. ^ The 2019 season saw the running of two categories known as the World Rally Championship-2 Pro for manufacturer teams, and the World Rally Championship-2 for privateers. However, this multi-class structure was found to be too confusing, and so the category was re-structured for the 2020 season.[4]
  2. ^ Was not eligible to compete as the project was not approved by Mitsubishi

References

  1. ^ "Specific Regulations for Cars in Group Rally2" (PDF).
  2. ^ "Classification and Definitions" (PDF).
  3. ^ "FIA Rally Pyramid Brochure February 2021" (PDF).
  4. ^ Evans, David (8 October 2019). "FIA steps up plan to simplify WRC into five-tier career ladder". autosport.com. Motorsport Network. Retrieved 8 October 2019.
  5. ^ Evans, David (8 October 2019). "FIA steps up plan to simplify WRC into five-tier career ladder". autosport.com. Motorsport Network. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  6. ^ Evans, David (31 May 2017). "Citroen starting from scratch with WRC2 car". autosport.com. Motorsport Network. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  7. ^ a b "Copec Rally Chile 2019 Official Entry List" (PDF). rallymobil.cl. Rally Chile. 18 April 2019. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 April 2019. Retrieved 31 October 2019.
  8. ^ a b "M-Sport Ford Confirm Greensmith and Pieniazek for WRC-2 Pro". m-sport.co.uk. M-Sport World Rally Team. 10 January 2019. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  9. ^ "87. Rallye Automobile Monte-Carlo" (PDF). Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  10. ^ "Rally Sweden 2020 Entry List" (PDF). rallysweden.com. Rally Sweden. 27 January 2020. Retrieved 27 January 2020.
  11. ^ a b Evans, David (28 November 2018). "Skoda Motorsport scales back for 2019 WRC2 season, Tidemand exits". autosport.com. Motorsport Network. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  12. ^ Evans, David (24 April 2017). "Volkswagen Polo WRC to run with a privateer for first time". autosport.com. Motorsport Network. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  13. ^ a b "Introducing the Mitsubishi R5". wrc.com. WRC Promoter GmbH. 23 September 2014. Retrieved 30 April 2020.
  14. ^ Evans, David (17 April 2019). "Toyota WRC squad plans to build R5-spec car for WRC2 class". autosport.com. Motorsport Network. Retrieved 31 October 2019.