New Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC revealed

With VW out of the championship, will 2017 be Hyundai's season to shine?

Dare we get excited about the 2017 WRC season? The team that has so dominated the series in recent years is out, Toyota is back in and the cars are lighter, more powerful and more technologically advanced than 2016. Sounds promising, does it not?

Watch out!

Here's the latest of the 2017 cars, Hyundai's new i20 Coupe. It follows the Toyota Yaris WRC and Citroen C3, with any updates from M-Sport and its Fiesta due to follow soon. It's based on the new(ish) three-door i20, with Hyundai promising "an aggressive new look and evolved technologies." There will certainly be no missing this! Team Principal Michel Nandan added: "It's a great new technical challenge and one that we have tackled with enthusiasm." As with the Toyota and Citroen, expect around 380hp.

The driver line up remains unchanged, with Thierry Neuville, Hayden Paddon and Dani Sordo driving the three cars. Hopes will be high following a second-place finish in the Manufacturers' Championship last year, with two victories and ten additional podiums.

The 2017 season begins at Monte Carlo in January, with the 13-round calendar concluding at Australia in November. Don't forget we should see the Abarth 124 rally at some point during next year too. And hopefully the Tuthill GT3 can be seen at a few rounds as well. See, it really is looking like a better season!