Ousted Toyota WRC driver Meeke could be thrown career lifeline by Pirelli
Ex-World Rally Championship driver Kris Meeke could be handed a career lifeline as Pirelli's tyre tester ahead of the marque's return to the series in 2021
The Northern Irishman, a five-time WRC event winner, had been left without a drive for the 2020 season after being dropped by Toyota having spent just one season and securing a single podium with the Japanese squad.
But with Pirelli preparing to become the sole supplier to the WRC from 2021 having won a four-year tender from governing body FIA and taking over from Michelin, Meeke is being considered for the role of testing the new rubber.
Other drivers up for consideration include former Toyota driver Jari-Matti Latvala, and ex-Hyundai drivers Hayden Paddon and Andreas Mikkelsen, with all four drivers having had experience of using the latest Plus cars introduced in 2017.
Rally activities manager of Pirelli, Terenzio Testoni, said: "We will take one who is not doing the world championship this year, we need a driver who has experience with the Plus [car].
"We still have to choose him, but the line-up includes names like Kris Meeke, Jari-Matti Latvala, Hayden Paddon, Andreas Mikkelsen.
"We're picking him out with the FIA. Anyway it will be one of these, because we need one of these drivers who knows the WRC Plus [car].
"The main factor in these cars is the aerodynamic load and it is important to have a driver who knows how important the effect of aerodynamics is.
"The aspect of the aerodynamics of the Plus is perhaps the one that we know the least, but already in the past we have had the opportunity to rubberise WRC Plus, last year for example.
"We have a minimum of know-how and we are confident."
Testoni confirmed that the exact make of the test car has yet to be agreed, and that the COVID-19 pandemic has put Pirelli on the back foot, delaying the first test from April to July.
"The situation linked to the COVID-19 pandemic has led us to have difficulties and has delayed everything," he said.
"We were ready for the first tests at the end of April but now we are confident we can start in July.
"Pirelli, both for dirt and asphalt tyres, has always done its tests in Sardinia and has done so for various reasons.
"First of all we have all the references and we can understand where we are and immediately the goodness of the product, and then why we go to test directly on the special stages.
"And this is a parameter that can help us to speed up development."
Discussions ongoing over staging a WRC round in Latvia in 2020
Ypres Rally organisers in talks to host first Belgium WRC round
Daytona 24: WTR Acura tops heavily interrupted FP1
Five red flags disrupted the first practice session for this weekend's Daytona 24 Hours, while Filipe Albuquerque put the Wayne Taylor Racing Andretti Autosport Acura on top.
Pedrosa to make KTM MotoGP wildcard outing in Spanish GP
Dani Pedrosa will make his first MotoGP race start since the 2021 Styrian Grand Prix with a wildcard entry for KTM at this year’s Spanish GP in April.
House of Lords peer criticises "discourteous and unprofessional" Ben Sulayem
FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has been criticised by a House of Lords peer for being "deeply discourteous and unprofessional" in failing to reply to human rights concerns.
LMP2 drivers question move to slow class for Daytona 24 Hours
Leading LMP2 drivers have questioned the need for the secondary class to be slowed ahead of this weekend's Daytona 24 Hours, given that the new top-class GTP cars are running similar lap times to their DPi predecessors.
How fired-up Ogier became the WRC's ultimate Monte master
He may only be contesting a part-time campaign in the World Rally Championship these days, but Sebastien Ogier underlined that he's lost none of his speed in the 2023 season opener. Storming to yet another victory on the Monte Carlo Rally, the eight-time world champion rewrote the history books again as Toyota served notice of its intentions with a crushing 1-2
How Lancia pulled off its famous Monte Carlo giantkilling
Audi should have been invincible in the snowy conditions that typically greeted the World Rally Championship paddock in Monte Carlo. But unexpectedly warm weather for the 1983 season opener, combined with some left-field thinking from the Lancia crew turned the tables. Forty years on, team boss Cesare Fiorio reflects on a smash and grab
Why M-Sport has pinned all its efforts on a WRC reunion
M-Sport had a disastrous 2022 with its Rally1 Ford Pumas following Sebastien Loeb’s first-time-out win on the Monte. But now things are looking up with 2019 world champion Ott Tanak leading its attack, and the Cumbrian operation has optimism that it can challenge for a first title since Sebastien Ogier's departure at the end of 2018
The contenders seeking to take Rovanpera's WRC crown
As Kalle Rovanpera begins his World Rally Championship title defence in Monte Carlo, the Finn knows he has a target on his back. But who is best placed to knock the Toyota ace off his perch?
Why Rovanpera is anticipating a fight to defend his WRC title
Question: what could be harder than becoming the youngest-ever World Rally champion? Answer: becoming the youngest-ever two-time World Rally champion. That's quite the challenge facing Toyota's Kalle Rovanpera in 2022, particularly against rejuvenated opposition in the second year of the WRC's hybrid regulations
From F1 to WRC: Why Hyundai's new boss could be an inspired signing
OPINION: New Hyundai WRC team boss Cyril Abiteboul admits he’s got a lot to learn as he leads the marque's efforts to dethrone Toyota. But could his Formula 1 experience and evident strengths mean he turns out to be an inspired choice?
The ultimate rally car project the WRC is glad COVID killed
Toyota was unstoppable in the 2021 World Rally Championship, with an excellent 75% strike rate from 12 rallies. But in a scary proposition for its rivals, the Japanese marque had built a car for the final year of the previous regulations set which it believes was much faster and could feasibly have crushed the opposition completely. Here the story of its mothballed world-beater
Autosport writers' most memorable moments of 2022
The season just gone was a memorable one for many of our staff writers, who are fortunate enough to cover motorsport around the world. Here are our picks of the best (and in some cases, most eventful) from 2022
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.