The Swedish duo Dennis Rådström and co-driver Johan Johansson are the first to be announced to drive the brand-new Ford Fiesta Rally4 developed by M-Sport Poland for the new regulations.
Rådström is set to take part in the ERC3 Junior this season as soon as the coronavirus crises ends; the young Swedish talent who has stood on the top-step of the podium twice in Rally Sweden will be using the new Ford Fiesta Rally4 car on some of the iconic European stages.
He will be back for another year in the category, most recently last year, he was using the current generation Ford Fiesta R2T19 to take four wins out five events he entered.
Rådström has been in the Junior WRC class for the last three-years, having two victories, seven podiums and 58 stage wins in a Ford Fiesta R2T. Ending the 2019 season in third place overall and took his maiden win at Rally Sweden.
“I was lucky enough to have been involved in the development of the Fiesta Rally4 over the winter and I am really impressed with what M-Sport Poland have achieved.” Rådström said.
“The 2019 R2 was already an extremely competitive package but the Rally4 update really suits me, the additional traction and power gives it a new edge allowing you to push harder. I’ve always liked the look of the ERC calendar, so I’m really looking forward to the exotic events the ERC has to offer, each event is special in its own way.“
“The objective for me this year is, as always, to be as fast as possible and push to the limit – it’s how I go about my rallying. We’ve got three years of experience in Junior WRC which has been a really great learning curve and I will be applying it in an effort to win the ERC3J championship.
“The two-wheel drive competition has always been very close in ERC which is something I really thrive from, I’ve not seen all of the entries for ERC but I’m sure it will be as close as ever and I’m ready for the challenge.”
The car got recently unveiled by the company, who is already in full swing to build the new cars to meet the shipping deadline on 1 April, the new car is an upgraded variant of the current specification Fiesta R2T with more power, torque and sharpened driveshaft. The car is lighter than the current one by weight reducation.
“The Ford Fiesta Rally4 has been updated to offer drivers an edge on the competition by allowing drivers to push their limits further.” Maciek Woda, Board Member, M-Sport Poland, said.
“Dennis is a driver that has demonstrated his ability to consistently push a car to its limit in order to come out on top. All of us at M-Sport Poland are really looking forward to seeing what Dennis and Johan will do in the European Rally Championship.“
“We have been working with Dennis for over three years now and watched him develop into an extremely competitive driver in the FIA Junior WRC Championship where he was a contender for the championship on two occasions. I am confident that with the new Ford Fiesta Rally4, Dennis will be equipped with the best equipment to push for ERC3 Junior victories and the championship.”
