The M-Sport Ford World Rally Team has withdrawn the entry for next week´s Rally New Zealand for the Frenchman Adrien Fourmaux, the youngster was set to contest the 11th round of the 2022 FIA World Rally Championship based in the Auckland region in New Zealand but the team confirmed this morning he has to sit it out.
This will be the second rally in a row that Fourmaux is forced to sit out, he was withdrawn from the line-up for the EKO Acropolis Rally Greece last month as well after damaging his Ford Puma Rally1 car during the Ypres Rally Belgium which seems proved to be too severe to repair in time.
As it stands now, he will rejoin the line-up for the penultimate round at Rally RACC – Rally de España, which takes place in Salou from 20-23 October. For Rally New Zealand the team will only be fielding three cars where Craig Breen and Gus Greensmith are going for the factory team meanwhile the Italian privateer Lorenzo Bertelli is joining with the support of M-Sport in the third car.
In a statement issued by M-Sport it reads: “After reassessing Adrien Fourmaux’s targets for the 2022 season, M-Sport has withdrawn Adrien’s entry for Rally New Zealand. M-Sport remains fully committed to Adrien and this decision has been made in conjunction with him and our partners. M-Sport can confirm Adrien will return to action with the team on Rally Spain in a Puma Hybrid Rally1.“
