Stobart: WRC still good value

The WRC has been rocked by the departure of the works Subaru and Suzuki teams during the economic downturn, amid concerns in the service park about the promotion of the championship.

But Stobart CEO Andrew Tinkler said his company had no qualms about committing to a third season as the primary sponsor of Ford's three-car 'junior' team.

"Stobart Group remains committed to its motorsport programme due to the fantastic return it receives in terms of global media exposure and business-to-business opportunities," he said.

"We hope to see the Stobart drivers challenging for honours throughout the championship's 12 rounds and continuing to fly the flag for the team at the premier level of rallying."

Stobart Ford have also officially confirmed that Urmo Aava will join Matthew Wilson and Henning Solberg in their World Rally Championship line-up this year.

Aava drove for Citroen's second-string PH Sport squad last year, finishing in the top five in Greece and New Zealand. The 29-year-old Estonian is set to contest eight events for Stobart in 2009, with Solberg and Wilson staying on for the full 12-round season.

"The driver line-up of Matthew, Henning and now Urmo Aava has the potential to deliver very good results, and the Ford Focus WRC will once again be an extremely competitive package," said Ford WRC boss Malcolm Wilson.

"The main aim for the season will be to build on last year's results and regularly score podium finishes."

Last year Gigi Galli began the season as Stobart's lead driver, but suffered a broken leg in Germany and was replaced by Francois Duval.