Suzuki WRC News: Let The Dirt Fly!

One of the biggest Japanese automakers is now stepping up to the World Rally Championship level for a full season, and has confirmed its drivers for 2008. Per-Gunnar Andersson and Toni Gardemeister have been given the privilege to put the Suzuki SX4 through its maiden rallies in the 08′ season. While the few outings that the Suzuki made during 2007 were less than spectacular, these early experiments laid groundwork for the SX4 for 2008. This past season, Toni finished an impressive 13 out of 24 in the WRC standings—more impressive than it sounds, considering he was driving a three-year-old Citroen and only competed in four events. With a full blown program ahead of him, who knows what he will accomplish in this upcoming season. It’ll be a big adjustment for Andersson as he moves from the PWRC level to the WRC ranks, as the cars have more horsepower and are more technically advanced than the junior-class cars he’s used to.

While no North American TV coverage has yet been announced, there will bits and pieces of the series trickling through the net, plus possibly more extensive coverage if The Racing Network ever gets off the ground.

The start of the 2008 season is just a few days away—I can’t wait!