Frenchman Loubat to drive Puma-Ford Rally 1 ahead of WRC

Pierre-Louis Loubet is ready to return to rallying’s top division this year after agreeing to a deal with British outfit M-Sport to compete in seven WRC events, beginning with Rally Croatia in April.

Loubet and co-driver Vincent Landais will partner up with M-Sport for a familiarisation excursion with the vehicle in a round of the Belgian Rally Championship to prepare for his debut WRC race with the outfit.

In preparation for a comeback to the World Rally Championship, Pierre-Louis Loubet will drive an M-Sport Rally1 Ford Puma for the first time at this weekend’s South Belgian Rally.

The South Belgian Rally will host the second round of the Belgian national championship on Saturday, with 151 kilometres of challenging asphalt stages. Rally Croatia, which is also a tarmac rally, could get plenty of mileage from the event.

Loubet is no stranger to the M-Sport team, having raced for them in WRC2 in 2017 and then winning the championship in 2019 driving a privately-run Skoda.

The 25-year-previous old’s rally participation was in September at the Acropolis in Greece, before being forced to withdraw from Rally Spain in October owing to a broken hip sustained in a road traffic collision.

Loubet said, “Super happy to be back in a rally car, after so much time at home it’s great. Really happy to be back with Vincent and to do my first rally with M-Sport is a great, great day, it’s almost like a birthday. I’m looking forward to working with everybody and being in a good condition after the rally to do some good things in Croatia.”

Verstappen made his rally debut last month, finishing seventh in the Belgian Rally Championship season opener, Rally van Haspengouw.

Loubet will compete in the South Belgian Rally with a few noteworthy names, including former Citroen factory WRC driver Stephane Lefebvre and former Formula One driver Jos Verstappen. DG Sport’s Citroen C3 Rally2 entrants will be driven by the duo.