Prodrive WRC Team
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| Full name | Prodrive WRC Team |
|---|---|
| Base |  Banbury, United Kingdom |
| Team principal(s) | David Richards |
| Drivers |  Kris Meeke[1] Dani Sordo[2] |
| Co-drivers |  Paul Nagle[1] Carlos del Barrio[2] |
| Chassis | Mini John Cooper Works WRC |
| Tyres | Michelin |
| World Rally Championship career | |
| Debut | 2011 |
| Constructors' Championships | 0 |
| Drivers' Championships | 0 |
| Rally wins | 0 |
The Prodrive WRC Team, formerly known as the Mini WRC Team is the name given to the World Rally Championship (WRC) team run by Prodrive. Prodrive developed the car, the Mini John Cooper Works WRC, in cooperation with MINI.[3]
Contents
Mini in rallying
Mini's history in international rallying dates back to the 1960s, when the Mini Cooper S won the legendary Monte Carlo Rally on three occasions, in 1964, 1965 and 1967, as well as wins on the Acropolis Rally, RAC Rally and 1000 Lakes Rally,[4] and the European Rally Championship in 1965.
Previous Mini rally cars includes the Mini 850, which was first driven to victory by Pat Moss.[5]
Formation
Reports began emerging in mid-2009 that Mini, now owned by BMW, was planning a return to rallying. The reports went even further when Prodrive said that it would not field an entry for the 2011 Formula One season, in order to focus on a return to rallying.[6]
On 27 July 2010, Mini ended months of speculation by confirming its rally programme in cooperation with Prodrive. The team, the work based-Mini WRC Team, would compete at selected rounds of the 2011 World Rally Championship season, ahead of a full season from 2012 onwards. The team set a target of winning the World Rally Championship in 2013.[7]
Team
Mini World Rally Car (2010–)
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Reports had emerged before the rally team was founded that the car was being planned. When the rally team was confirmed BMW confirmed that the car would be used on a limited schedule in the 2011 World Rally Championship. Prodrive confirmed that work on the Mini WRC started in late 2010, and its first shakedown is due in November 2010.
Competition
A complete rally programme will be implemented from 2012 onwards, with the car being powered by a BMW-developed 1600cc turbocharged engine.[8] The team intended to compete in six rounds of the World Rally championship however they announced that they were considering increasing the amount of rallies they participate in [9]
Operations
The team are based at Prodrive's facilities in Banbury, previously the base of the Subaru World Rally Team.[5] The team principal is David Richards, along with Co-Principal Glen Coates.
The team signed Kris Meeke, a former IRC rally champion, as one of its rally drivers.[10][11] In January 2011 the second driver was announced and Dani Sordo signed up for the 2011 World Rally Championship season.[2]
WRC Team Mini Portugal
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In February 2012 BMW reduced support to the team, and then formed the WRC Team Mini Portugal.[12] The WRC Team Mini Portugal was formed out of the merger of the Mini entries of Armindo Araújo World Rally Team and Palmeirinha Rally, which were both run by the Motorsport Italia firm for drivers Armindo Araújo and Paulo Nobre respectively. Team Mini Portugal were registered as a manufacturer entry, while the new Prodrive WRC Team was demoted to a works-supported private team. The manufacturers points that had been scored by Armindo Araújo World Rally Team and Palmeirinha Rally at the Monte Carlo Rally prior to the change were removed.
WRC results
| Year | Car | No | Driver | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | WDC | Points | WMC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Mini John Cooper Works WRC | 37 | Dani Sordo |
SWE | MEX | POR | JOR | ITA 6 |
ARG | GRE | FIN Ret |
GER 3 |
AUS | FRA 2 |
ESP 4 |
GBR 20 |
8th | 59 | -* | -* |
| 52 | Kris Meeke |
SWE | MEX | POR | JOR | ITA Ret |
ARG | GRE | FIN Ret |
GER Ret |
AUS | FRA Ret |
ESP 5 |
GBR 4 |
11th | 25 | ||||
| 2012 | Mini John Cooper Works WRC | 23 |  Jarkko Nikara |
MON | SWE | MEX | POR | ARG | GRE | NZL | FIN | GER | GBR | FRA | ITA | ESP 5 |
16th | 10 | - | NC |
| 37 | Dani Sordo |
MON 2 |
SWE Ret |
MEX | POR 11 |
ARG | GRE | NZL 6 |
FIN | GER 9 |
GBR | FRA Ret |
ITA | ESP 9 |
11th | 35 | ||||
| 52 |  Pierre Campana |
MON 7 |
21st | 6 | ||||||||||||||||
 Patrik Sandell |
SWE 8 |
MEX | POR Ret |
ARG | GRE | NZL | FIN | GER | GBR | FRA | ITA | ESP | 27th | 4 | ||||||
| 2013 | Mini John Cooper Works WRC | 23 | Jarkko Nikara |
MON | SWE 25 |
MEX | POR | ARG | GRE | ITA | FIN Ret |
GER | AUS | FRA | ESP | GBR | - | 0 | - | - |
- Mini entered in 2011 season as development entry, therefore they could not score points as a team.
See also
References
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