Hyundai unveils 2017 i20 Coupe WRC

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Hyundai has unveiled its 2017 World Rally Championship (WRC) challenger, the i20 Coupe WRC at a media event in Monza, Italy.

The three-door i20 Coupe is the team’s third new car since its debut in the Championship back in 2014 and has been designed to meet WRC’s revised technical regulations which come into force for 2017.

While changes made to the racer have been centred on improving aerodynamic and mechanical grip, there has been an increase in engine power from 220kW to 280kW, along with a reduction in overall weight of the car and the re-introduction of the active centre differential.

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The Hyundai Motorsport team hopes to build on its most successful season to date, where it secured two victories and an additional ten podium finishes.

Team Principal Michel Nandan said: “We are heading into a new era for the sport with the biggest change to the regulations for some time. It’s a great new technical challenge and one that we have tackled with enthusiasm. It’s an opportunity to put into practice everything we have learned and experienced in the past three seasons. All teams are starting from scratch so we are on equal footing. Having finished in second position in 2016, we want to demonstrate our ability to fight for the Championship in 2017 – and we are confident the Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC will help us do just that.”

There will be an unchanged driver line-up for 2017, which will offer the team important stability with the introduction of a new car. Thierry Neuville, Hayden Paddon and Dani Sordo will contest all rounds of the Championship alongside their respective co-drivers Nicolas Gilsoul, John Kennard and Marc Martí.

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New sporting regulations for 2017 mean that manufacturers will be able to field up to three cars in each round, with the two top classified finishers scoring points for the Manufacturers’ Championship. After three seasons of competing with two separate team names, Hyundai Motorsport’s three crews will run under a unified banner in 2017: the Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team.

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