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Podcast

Podcast: 2023 WRC season preview

The new World Rally Championship season is the subject of discussion in the latest edition of the Autosport podcast, ahead of the first round in Monte Carlo commencing this weekend.

Kalle Rovanpera, Jonne Halttunen, Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT Toyota GR Yaris Rally1

Kalle Rovanpera, Jonne Halttunen, Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT Toyota GR Yaris Rally1

McKlein / Motorsport Images

Toyota's Kalle Rovanpera will seek to defend the title he won in 2022 against rejuvenated opposition, with 2019 world champion Ott Tanak returning to M-Sport for the first time since 2017 and former Toyota man Esapekka Lappi taking the Estonian's old drive at Hyundai alongside team leader Thierry Neuville.

Both Lappi and Neuville will have a new boss in former Renault Formula 1 team principal Cyril Abiteboul, while there are also changes to the calendar and to the technical makeup of the cars ahead of the second season for the WRC's Rally1 hybrid regulations.

Autosport's WRC correspondent Tom Howard joins host Martyn Lee to discuss the off-season goings on and what to expect from the traditional curtain raiser.

An extended version of the podcast can be found on Motorsport Network's dedicated rally channel, Gravel Notes, featuring interviews with Rovanpera, Neuville and Tanak.

 

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