Mäkinen: “We were hoping to take the 2021 Yaris for 2022”

…Why did you launch a car that should only be used for one season before the arrival of a WRC hybrid?

We need to see how the new regulations will evolve. Initially, with what had been decided by the world commission, there were not a lot of changes to be made between the 2021 car and that of 2022. We hoped to take the 2021 Yaris WRC to develop the 2022 car. However , it appears that there are discussions again and it does not look good. We are really very disappointed.

That is to say, you could not use this 2021 Yaris for 2022? Would you have to develop yet another car?

The 2022 regulations seemed very close to those of 2021 except with regard to the implementation of batteries and the hybridization system. This would have only required us to modify part of the car... but now we are wondering. The question has been reopened and we are no longer sure if this will be good or not. I have no idea what that means. What I do know, however, is that to develop an entirely new WRC for 2022, the deadline is very short. The 2021 version takes many things from the current one. There are several elements and subjects common to both cars and yet it took us a long time to build the 2021. If we were to make a completely new WRC, I think we would have to procure even more resources and I don't know where we could find them...