Proton to enter APRC and S-WRC in 2012 rally calendar
With the team’s memorable exploits in 2011 still fresh in memory, the Proton Motorsports S2000 rally team has officially announced its participation in the 2012 season of the Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC) and Super World Rally Championship (S-WRC).
According to a statement from Proton Motorsports, the team will compete in five out of seven races in the Super World Rally Championship (S-WRC) season as well as the full six rounds of the FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC) calendar. The team’s busy schedule starts on 20-21 Jan 2012 with the opening round of the S-WRC in Monte Carlo.
The S-WRC, known as the FIA Super 2000 World Rally Championship in full, is a companion rally series to the World Rally Championship, being driven on the same stages. Participation in S-WRC is limited to production-based cars homologated under the Super 2000 rules. The series began in 2010 and splits the production World Rally Championship (P-WRC), which was previously open to both Super 2000 and Group N4 cars, into two separate competitions.
For the opening round in Monte Carlo, Proton will have former Junior world rally champion Per Gunnar Andersson and co-driver Emil Axelsson in one car, and former European rally champion Giandomenico Basso and co-driver Mitia Dotta in another.
“The SWRC is our first outing with the S2000. Given the improvements and testing done during the winter break, we are optimistic that the drivers PG Andersson and Giandomenico Basso will deliver good results for the team. We look forward to a good start in Monte Carlo,” said Datuk Abdul Razak Dawood, Head of Proton Motorsports.
“At Proton we are committed to be better and this extends to both competition and the manufacturing of production vehicles for the global market. We are also committed to winning and excelling in competition which supports our aspiration of becoming truly competitive global brand and car manufacturer,”says John Chacko, Director of Group Marketing, Branding and Motorsports.
