According to a report by Autocar, current Intercontinental Rally Challenge champion Kris Meeke has apparently signed on to drive for the Prodrive-run Mini World Rally Championship team next year.
Apparently, Meeke was a top candidate for the job since the team announced its intention to contest the WRC with the new Mini Coutryman from next year. The 31 year-old Irishman first competed in minor events in the UK before being taken under the wing of the legendary Colin McRae, and later went on to score a drive in the Junior World Rally Championship with Palmer, before winning the IRC championship in his debut season with Peugeot in 2009.
Although a source close to Prodrive told Autocar that the “deal with Kris is done, David Richards has talked a great deal about having a British driver and he’s been as good as his word” – the driver in question has remained mum on the subject, “my focus remains on this year and winning rallies with Peugeot.”
Prodrive boss David Richards has made point of wanting to sign on a new young team of engineers, mechanics and drivers to emulate what the team did with Subaru during the mid ’90s and early noughties.
“The whole idea and the whole concept is to recreate what we did with young people in the Subaru days, and our job is to give them all the resources they need to do the job properly and to stand back and let them get on with it.”
“In the same vein we took on Colin McRae and Richard Burns, we want to do that again. We want to create a team that everybody feels part of and passionate about. I remember the days when we were running Colin and the following which we created.”
Two-time world champion Marcus Gronholm will reportedly test the new Mini Countryman WRC in Portugal next week, the first serious run the Mini will have on gravel since the initial shakedown at Prodrive’s proving ground earlier this week. Former JWRC Per-Gunnar Andersson reportedly also has an offer to drive for the Prodrive/Mini team next year.
