Lada back in World Touring Car Championship with Muller's nephew
Lada's Vesta model will remain on the World Touring Car Championship grid after RC Motorsport revealed its plans to enter the series with the nephew of four-time champion Yvan Muller
Lada announced it would end its factory involvement in the WTCC before the final round of the 2016 season but efforts had been ongoing over the winter to keep the Vestas in the championship.
French outfit RC has now registered two of the ex-factory cars for the 2017 season, one of which will be driven by Muller's nephew Yann Ehrlacher.
The 20-year-old drove for his uncle's outfit in the European Le Mans Series last year, having previously won two domestic championships in his native France, and has already tested the Vesta for RC, which is based at the Magny-Cours circuit.
The team is expected to announce its second driver in the coming weeks.
"This is such an amazing opportunity for me and I really can't believe it's happening," said Ehrlacher.
"I've been really impressed with the car during testing and the team is working really hard too."
WTCC-2 DROPPED FOR 2017
WTCC organisers have dropped plans to introduce a second, WTCC-2 tier for the 2017 season.
After Lada's withdrawal prompted fears about grid numbers for the 2017 season, plans were ratified at the previous World Motor Sport Council meeting in November for a second class of TCN2 cars, based largely around TCR regulations, to be allowed to race in the championship.
But with 16 TC1 cars registered for the full 2017 campaign, those plans have been abandoned - and Thursday's WMSC meeting confirmed the class would not go ahead.
"The proposed WTCC-2 category announced at the conclusion of the World Motorsport Council of November 30 2016 has been deleted for the 2017 season," read a statement from the FIA.
"This has been done to allow the Touring Car Commission and the promoter to focus entirely on the main category [TC1] in 2017."
The WMSC meeting also confirmed the date of the Argentinian round at Termas de Rio Hondo would be brought forward by three weeks to the July 16 weekend, and that as anticipated the Chinese round will move from Shanghai to the Ningbo International Circuit.
CONFIRMED 2017 WTCC LINE-UP SO FAR
Honda: Tiago Monteiro, Norbert Michelisz, Ryo Michigami
Volvo: Thed Bjork, Nick Catsburg, Nestor Girolami
Sebastien Loeb Racing Citroen: Mehdi Bennani, Tom Chilton, John Filippi
Munnich Motorsport Citroen: Rob Huff
ROAL Motorsport Chevrolet: Tom Coronel
Zengo Motorsport Honda: Aurelien Panis
RC Motorsport Lada: Yann Ehrlacher
Yvan Muller joins Volvo WTCC project as development driver
Esteban Guerrieri lands part-time 2017 WTCC deal with Campos
Honda responds to Volvo WTCC organisation claims
JAS Motorsport's Alessandro Mariani says he was "amazed" by Alexander Murdzevski Schedvin's suggestion that Volvo's structure compared to Honda was key to its 2017 World Touring Car Championship success
Volvo reckons team structure defeated Honda in 2017 WTCC
Polestar head of motorsport Alexander Murdzevski Schedvin says Volvo's organisation compared to World Touring Car Championship rival Honda was vital to its 2017 title success
WTCR's 26-car limit is protect 'quality' says series chief Ribeiro
The World Touring Car Cup's limit on full-season entries will ensure a level of "quality" and avoid "difficulties" arising from local drivers competing, says Eurosport Events chief Francois Ribeiro
Merger of WTCC and TCR should have happened two years earlier
The World Touring Car Championship's move to adopt TCR regulations should have happened "at least two years earlier", says veteran WTCC racer Tom Coronel
Why joker laps are entering the mainstream
This season the World Touring Car Championship looks certain to bring joker laps to a circuit-racing world championship for the first time. And it need not be the daft gimmick people may think
The making of the world's best tin-top driver
He has been overshadowed at Citroen for the last three seasons, but the retirement of Yvan Muller means the world says farewell to one of touring-car racing's finest talents
Volvo's plan to conquer the WTCC
Volvo gave the World Touring Car Championship a major boost when it announced it would enter the series, but its ambitions don't stop there. JACK COZENS examines its programme, the S60 and what its arrival means for the WTCC
The WTCC's Nordschleife gamble paid off
A 17-car field on a 13-mile track - the WTCC's Nurburgring Nordschleife gamble wasn't going to be easy to pull off. STUART CODLING explains how the series made it work
Insight from a Nordschleife master
World championship racing returns to the Nordschleife this weekend. STUART CODLING got a lesson from one of the legendary track's few masters
Becoming world champion for £100k
The 2012 World Touring Car champion says he never had the money to race cars. Yet 2015 is his 11th season in the WTCC. He talks STUART CODLING through his journey from motorsport fan to paid professional - for little more than £100,000
Can the vanquished champion bounce back?
The World Touring Car Championship kicks off in Argentina this weekend, and Yvan Muller bids to reclaim his throne from Citroen team-mate Jose Maria Lopez. He talks to STUART CODLING
The top 10 WTCC drivers of 2014
Citroen had no rivals during the 2014 World Touring Car Championship, and 'rookie' Jose Maria Lopez hit the ground running to emerge as a worthy champion. PETER MILLS rates the field