The all-new Honda Civic Type R R3 will make its gravel debut in the hands of Dani Sola on this weekend's Wales Rally GB, as the Spaniard looks to add valuable data ahead of next season.
Former JWRC champion Sola gave the car its first asphalt outing in the World Rally Championship on last month's Rally Catalunya, winning the R3 class against well-established opposition. He would also have finished fourth amongst the Junior Championship competitors had he been eligible.
However, while the car has already proved its credentials on asphalt - most recently with a remarkable fifth overall on the IRC's Rallye du Valais in Switzerland - gravel will be a whole new challenge, especially as Wales Rally GB runs through the flat-out forests of south Wales, making it one of the most challenging gravel events of the year. Speeds are consistently high, although the season-high 121 drivers face the risk of muddy roads with ice and fog as Britain descends into winter. .
Nonetheless, Britain holds very fond memories for Sola, as the 32-year old won his class and the Junior World Rally Championship on the 2002 Wales Rally GB and, a year later, made his WRC debut on the same event.
"Great Britain is one of my favourite gravel events because the stages really reward commitment," the reigning Spanish gravel champion commented, "I'm very much looking forward to driving them again. However, we are not underestimating the challenge ahead of us. As a team, we haven't competed on gravel since July and this new R3 car has never competed on gravel at all.
"Our mission will be to get the car to the finish and try to prove that we can be as competitive on gravel as we are on asphalt. It's going to be a very tough rally, with weather conditions that are potentially very difficult, but, if everything comes together I believe we can do a very good job, as we have done so far all year."
Alessandro Mariani, team principal of Italian firm JAS Motorsport which has built and developed the new Civic, agreed that the outing was more about proving the car than chasing glory.
"Our entry on Wales Rally GB has been designed to show the potential of our R3 car on gravel, after the good results we have achieved recently on asphalt," he confirmed, "This event represents a very exciting opportunity for us, and one which we intend to make the most of."
The new R3 rules have been set out by the FIA as a template for the future of rallying, based around two-litre, two-wheel drive cars built to a strict set of cost-effective criteria. Performance is quite close to that of a Super 1600 car, but at a much lower price. The Honda Civic Type R R3 is powered by a new Honda engine developed in collaboration with Mugen, also conforming to the Group R regulations.
