Lancia returns to the world rally championship with Yohan Rossel and Nikolay Gryazin

The appointment with the Monte Carlo Rally is getting ever closer, which will open the 2026 season from 22 to 25 January. An event unique in its history, and which in the next edition will be home to a great, long-awaited return: for the first time since 1993, Lancia will participate in the world championship, with the Turin company fighting for victory in the WRC2 by fielding two Ypsilon Rally2 HF Integrale. At the time of announcing its official return, the team had not yet unveiled its drivers and co-drivers, with the crew now revealed. On the one hand, the team will feature 30-year-old Yohan Rossel and his co-co-driver Arnaud Dunand. Reigning WRC2 vice-world champion, the Frenchman has achieved notable results on a national and international scale always with the Stellantis Group, establishing himself in the WRC3 championship in 2021: “Discovering the Lancia coat of arms and listening to Miki Biasion (twice world champion with Lancia, ed.), who compares Lancia to Ferrari, you immediately understand that it is a brand that commands respect – declared the transalpine – I am therefore very proud to join Lancia with the same motivation I had at the beginning of my career. This new chapter will give a real boost to my career, with a new manufacturer, great ambitions and the desire to go even further with one project: to win.” The 28-year-old Nikolay Gryazin, Russian by birth but with a Bulgarian license for a few seasons now, was also very enthusiastic. Reigning WRC2 Challenger champion and winner of the ERC Junior title, he will participate in the upcoming world championship with co-driver Konstantin Aleksandrov: “It is an immense honor for me to be part of this story – he commented – with the team we share the same ambitions: fighting at the top, continuing to improve every day and bringing this legendary name back to its rightful place”. Lancia thus returns to the world rally championship once again with the record of the highest number of titles won, with 11 victories obtained from the 70s to the 90s: “Lancia’s return to the world rally championship is an important step and we face it with a strong sense of responsibility – added Roberta Zerbi, CEO of Lancia – Yohan and Nikolay bring different perspectives, a modern vision of the sport and the right attitude to grow together with our project. The Ypsilon Rally2 HF Integrale was created to compete at the highest levels and the work of the Lancia Corse HF team allows us to look at this new chapter with confidence.”