On January 23, a new era in the FIA World Rally Championship begins with the Monte Carlo Rally. For the 52nd season, the rules were changed and further developed.
The cars will now use tires from the South Korean company Hankook. The world’s leading tire manufacturer Hankook Tire & Technology will exclusively supply tires to all categories of the World Rally Championship over the next three years.
Different types of tires are manufactured. The Ventus Z215 is said to offer excellent cornering properties and handling on both dry and wet roads. The Ventus Z210 has excellent grip in bad weather, especially on wet roads. The Dynapro R213 is then a multi-purpose rally tire with excellent shock absorption, durability and grip on unpaved roads.
In addition, the Winter i*cept SR20, which provides better grip on snow roads in winter, and the Winter i*Pike SR10W, which is equipped with a special stud that is optimized for slippery ice, are designed for cold conditions.
By partnering with the WRC, Hankook Tire becomes one of the few brands to support the five major FIA World Championships, including the FIA Formula One World Championship The WRC tire supply agreement was concluded in November 2024 at Hankook’s Technoplex headquarters in South Korea .
Hankook gained experience with his commitment to the WRC in the FIA European Rally Championship (ERC) and the FIA Junior ERC has shown that Hankook is ready for the next challenge.
Hankook started the development of large tires from February 2024. The unique and different requirements of the World Rally Championship were discovered in many test drives. The trials were conducted across Europe, including Finland, Sweden, France and Greece.
Close cooperation with the manufacturers involved in the WRC was very important during the development. Hyundai, Toyota, M-Sport Ford and WRC2 champion Citroën have all played a central role in the test programme.
Cooperation with WRC developers was the basis of the program’s success. Hyundai, Toyota, M-Sport Ford and WRC2 parent Citroën have all taken a leading role in the test programme.
“We have already created a successful partnership with Hankook in the ERC and we are very happy to continue this to the WRC,” says Jona Siebel, Managing Director of WRC Promoter GmbH, welcoming the new tire supplier.
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After three years, Rally1 cars now operate without plug-in hybrid systems. The minimum weight was reduced by 80 kg from 1260 kg to 1180 kg. The size of the air mass restriction on the turbo engines was reduced from 36 mm to 35 mm. Engines now produce around 380 hp which use sustainable fuel.
This year’s World Cup calendar now has 14 events, one more than last year. With Gran Canaria (Spain), Paraguay and Saudi Arabia, three races will be held for the first time.
The points system introduced in the 2024 season has been changed again. In the future, at the end of the rally, the top ten drivers will get championship points (25/18/15/12/10/8/6/4/2/1). Sunday’s separate slot rewards the top five (5/4/5/2/1 of the final stage. On the final stage, the fastest five will get extra points 5/4/3/2/1 as usual. Overall win you should be better rewarded in the future.Basically, a driver can get 35 points instead of 30 in a long weekend.
