MSport Ford World Rally Team
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Malcolm Wilson
Richard Millener
Dates back to 1997
2017
3
2
Dovenby Hall, Cumbria, UK
Puma Rally1
Heritage
M-Sport’s rise to the top level of rallying began in the mid-1990s, when former British Rally Champion Malcolm Wilson was entrusted with running Ford’s factory World Rally Championship programme. Officially taking charge in 1997, the Cumbrian-based operation quickly established itself as one of the defining forces of the modern WRC era.
Working initially with the Escort WRC before ushering in the hugely successful Focus RS WRC, M-Sport became synonymous with some of rallying’s biggest names. Colin McRae, Carlos Sainz and Markko Märtin all delivered victories for the team during the late 1990s and early 2000s, while Ford remained a consistent challenger for both manufacturers’ and drivers’ honours.
The breakthrough came in 2006. Led by double world champion Marcus Grönholm and Mikko Hirvonen, Ford claimed its first manufacturers’ championship in 27 years before successfully defending the title again in 2007. The Focus RS WRC became one of the defining cars of its generation, helping cement M-Sport’s reputation as one of rallying’s elite operations.
As the championship transitioned into a new era, the Ford Fiesta RS WRC replaced the Focus in 2011. Jari-Matti Latvala and Hirvonen continued to add victories, but Ford’s withdrawal from full factory backing at the end of 2012 forced M-Sport into a new chapter as an independent operation. Despite reduced manufacturer support, the team remained at the forefront of the championship through a combination of technical expertise, driver development and customer programmes.
That resilience produced one of the sport’s great modern success stories in 2017. The arrival of four-time world champion Sébastien Ogier transformed M-Sport’s fortunes as the team launched the all-new Fiesta WRC under the championship’s revised technical regulations. Ogier secured the drivers’ title at the first attempt while M-Sport clinched the manufacturers’ championship, its first in a decade. Ogier successfully defended the crown in 2018 before departing at the end of the season.
M-Sport entered the hybrid Rally1 era in 2022 with the Ford Puma Rally1 Hybrid, and immediately delivered a landmark victory. At Rallye Monte-Carlo, nine-time world champion Sébastien Loeb returned for a one-off appearance and guided the Puma to victory on the championship’s first event under the new regulations.
The years that followed reflected M-Sport’s longstanding philosophy of nurturing emerging talent. Ott Tänak returned to the squad in 2023 and delivered victories in Sweden and Chile, while the team increasingly focused on developing the next generation of drivers through its Rally1 and Rally2 programmes.
That commitment continued into 2024, when Adrien Fourmaux returned to the team after a season in Rally2 and produced the strongest campaign of his career with five podium finishes. Grégoire Munster secured a full-time Rally1 seat, while Latvian prospect Mārtiņš Sesks impressed on selected appearances with front-running pace almost immediately after stepping up to the sport’s top category.
For 2025, M-Sport entered another rebuilding phase centred around youth and long-term development. Munster remained with the team full-time alongside Josh McErlean, who became the first Irish driver to contest a full Rally1 campaign since Craig Breen. Despite operating against manufacturer-backed rivals with significantly greater resources, M-Sport continued to uphold its reputation as one of the championship’s most influential and resilient teams, a squad defined as much by opportunity and innovation as outright results.
M-Sport entered the final season of the current Rally1 regulations in 2026 with one of the youngest line-ups in the championship. Josh McErlean remains with the team for a second full Rally1 campaign after an encouraging rookie season in 2025, while Jon Armstrong steps up to the sport’s top category following a breakthrough run in the FIA European Rally Championship. Both crews will contest the full season in the Ford Puma Rally1 as part of M-Sport’s expanded collaboration with the Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy. The programme continues the team’s long-established philosophy of developing emerging talent.
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