The car has been officially launched by Ford Europe last month, after almost a year of development from Ford's partners M-Sport. Although the car is yet to be homologated by the International Automobile Federation (FIA), the Fiesta S2000 was already taken to action by M-Sport's Matthew Wilson during last month's Rally of Scotland.
The Finn did his first test with the car – which Ford will use in international and national events throughout 2010 – earlier this week and admitted the outing in Rally Monte Carlo would be a great chance to both check out its potential during a full-time event and get into racing mode for the beginning of the season.
“The Fiesta S2000 looks and sounds fantastic. It's great to finally drive it, be part of the development of a totally new car and I was surprised how quickly I got used to driving it.(...) There are almost four months between the final round of 2009 and the start of the 2010 season, so this will be ideal for getting my mind back into competition mode,” said Hirvonen, according to a press release from Ford.
In order to challenge Sebastien Loeb for the WRC title once again, Hirvonen needs to up his game on asphalt, the surface that is to make the WRC schedule 4 times next season.
“The 2010 WRC season begins almost a month later than usual so the Monte Carlo Rally will provide a perfect warm-up for Mikko. It's also a great test opportunity. Road conditions usually vary between dry asphalt and snow or ice. There are four asphalt rallies in the 2010 series, so it will give Mikko valuable practice on that surface. If the weather is wintery, it will also be a good rehearsal for the WRC's first round in Sweden,” added Ford's motorsport chief Gerard Quinn.
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