MINI is celebrating its first rally win. The John Cooper Works S2000 car, driven by Andrea Navarra, was victorious in the Rally dell'Adriatico.
The Griffone-run car led the opening round of the 2011 Italian gravel rally championship. Like all vehicles in its class the MINI ran with a FIA mandated 30mm restrictor on its BMW Motorsport engine. The restrictor is fitted to equalise the performance of cars in the 2.0-litre S2000 class.
For the World Rally Championship the MINI John Cooper Works S2000 runs with a 33mm restrictor, the same as the World Rally Car. The MINI WRC team and car will be officially launched on 11 April in Oxford. The competition debut for the MINI John Cooper Works World Rally Car will be in Sardinia in May at Rally Italy.