Martins Sesks Makes the Leap to WRC Rally1 Class with M-Sport Ford

Martins Sesks, known for his victories in the European Rally Championship (ERC), secures his transition to Rally1 of the World Rally Championship with M-Sport Ford in a collaboration supported by the WRC Promoter.

Sesks and his co-driver Francis Renars will embark on two consecutive events in Poland (June 27-30) and in their local event in Latvia (July 18-21). As part of the agreement, they will pilot a Ford Puma Rally1 without a hybrid system, marking their first appearance in the WRC in Poland before adopting the full hybrid version in Latvia. This change comes after the approval of regulations by the FIA ​​that allow teams to use Rally1 cars without hybrid units, with the addition of ballast to compensate for the weight of the plug-in hybrid system.

Sesks's graduation to the highest level of world rallying has been made possible through collaboration between the driver, M-Sport, and the WRC Promoter. At 24, Sesks is a regular competitor in the ERC driving Rally2 machinery. Last season, he achieved victories in Poland and Latvia, finishing as runner-up behind Hayden Paddon. In 2022, he won all stages on his way to victory in the ERC round in Latvia.

This year, he has swapped a Skoda Fabia for a Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 for the ERC 2024 campaign. "I am sincerely grateful, it is a dream come true to join forces with the M-Sport World Rally Team and the WRC Promoter for this remarkable opportunity to advance from Rally2 to Rally1 level," said Sesks. "I must admit it takes saying it twice to fully believe that we will soon be competing alongside elite drivers with Rally1 machinery."

Peter Thul, Senior Director of Sports at the WRC Promoter, added: "We identified the need to put more resources into supporting the next generation of potential WRC world champions and help them make the challenging step from support categories to the highest level of our sport. Martins's performances in the last two seasons of the ERC have made him deserving of this support. He has shown a winning margin in Latvia and Poland, and we believe that over time he will become a familiar face in the WRC."

Richard Millener, team principal at M-Sport, believes Sesks is the "perfect candidate" to debut with the new non-hybrid version of the Puma. "I am very happy to work on this project with Martins and the WRC Promoter, taking advantage of the new regulations for 2024 that allow us to race with Rally1 cars without the hybrid unit," said Millener. "Martins has an impressive résumé and is the perfect candidate to debut with this new non-hybrid strategy. It will be fantastic to see Martins driving the best rally cars existing in front of his local fans."