Citroen Racing's new C3 R5 challenger will undergo its first development tests on gravel this week, in readiness for its competitive WRC debut in 2018.

The car, which started to be penned more than a year ago and is aimed at the customer market, will supersede the French manufacturer's DS 3 R5 that enjoyed moderate success in the WRC 2 category.

Works drivers Stéphane Lefebvre and Craig Breen will both take part in the car's first gravel test, along with Yoann Bonato who is currently leading the French Rally Championship.

Citroën Racing team principal, Yves Matton, hopes his squad's all-new C3 R5 will "set new standards" in WRC 2 and will take the fight to Skoda and Ford – the manufacturers that are currently setting the pace in the category.

Citroën has revealed that many of the car's mechanical components have been successfully put through their paces on various test mules during 2017 and that the specification of the final car is almost complete.

For the first outing of the full car, we are already pretty close to the definition that will be offered to customers," Pierre Budar, development director, explained. "The sessions are being held on gravel, on sufficiently varied road surfaces to test the car's robustness and begin fine-tuning the basic set-up."

The manufacturer says there are similarities between the new C3 R5 and the C3 WRC that is currently competing at the top of the sport. The roll cages in both cars have been designed by the same engineer, while other technical solutions have been used across both cars – although they have been adapted to meet the R5 regulations and small-scale production requirements.

"In order to create an entirely new product, we used all of Citroën Racing's experience in the WRC, adding contributions from leading technical suppliers such as Sadev for the transmission and Reiger for the suspension systems," Matton said.

The WRC 2 category has been a big hit since it was introduced in 2013, providing a competitive stage for aspiring drivers to prove their mettle before graduating to the top-level WRC category. R5 cars feature four-wheel drive transmissions and 1.6-litre direct injection turbo engines that generate around 280bhp.

Thierry Neuville has not given up on his dream of securing this year's WRC drivers' title, despite the crushing set-back of a no-score at Rallye Deutschland.

Neuville began last week's rally leading the championship, but left it trailing four time champ Sébastien Ogier by 17 points after he lost a wheel and retired on the second day. 

With three of the season's 13 rounds remaining, the Hyundai ace stressed that he was not ready to concede defeat and was determined to fight on. 

"I could be angry with myself, but I have to accept it. I look forward and keep the motivation for the next rounds," he said. "I don't want to give up. I want to continue fighting until the end of the year. I'm pretty confident that we will still have some enjoyable events and maybe one or two more wins. I have a feeling that it's still not over."

But with a sizeable points deficit to make up at the rounds in Spain, Great Britain and Australia, Neuville conceded that he was likely to need some help from his rival. 

"I know that I can catch some points to Ogier for sure, but a lot will depend on his results at the upcoming events. On the next three rounds Seb can have a problem as well, he can make a mistake, have a puncture, everything is still possible," he said.  

As well as looking to capitalise on any mistakes from Ogier, Neuville said he was prepared to take more chances in order to overhaul his title rival.

"I think we have to definitely go for a more aggressive approach," he explained. "I have finished second in the championship a couple of times. I don't care, I want to win. So for the upcoming events our approach will be definitely much more aggressive - taking more risks to try and catch back some points."

Hyundai Motorsport has announced Andreas Mikkelsen will drive for the team for the remainder of the 2017 World Rally Championship season.  

The Norwegian was left without a drive after Volkswagen's withdrawal at the end of 2016. He tested for the Korean manufacturer earlier this year in April but Hyundai failed to find him a seat so he continued with his WRC2 campaign with Skoda. 

Mikkelsen was finally able to return to the WRC when Citroen handed him a seat for Italy and Poland. He finished in eighth and ninth place respectively following limited time in the car but was back to his usual best in his third and latest outing for the French outfit, when he climbed onto the second step of the podium at Rally Germany. 

The 28-year-old was expected to continue with Citroen for October's Rally Catalunya but Hyundai swooped in and Mikkelsen will now drive a Hyundai i20 Coupe along with championship chaser Thierry Neuville and Spanish veteran Dani Sordo. 

Team Principal Michel Nandan explained the thinking behind the team's decision. 

“Reaching this decision was not easy, but we felt it was necessary to reaffirm ourselves in the championship battle,” he said. “Discussions with Andreas have been ongoing since he was out of a drive but we had nothing to offer him, as our line-up was fixed.

"However, with us losing ground, we decided to re-evaluate the situation. We had an open discussion with all three of our crews and informed them of our decision to make this adjustment. The precise line-up for Spain has been made, but we will conf m our crews for Wales and Australia in due course.

"For now, though, we welcome Andreas and Anders into Hyundai Motorsport and look forward to getting our 2017 championship back on track from Spain onwards.”

Mikkelsen says his main aim is to help Hyundai overhaul M-Sport for the manufacturers' championship title. The team is currently 64 points adrift of Malcolm Wilson's team after Hyundai had a miserable Rally Germany. 

“I am delighted to be joining Hyundai Motorsport and to be back in the WRC for the next three rallies. It is a great team with some very talented people, and the Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC has proven itself to be a winning car on every surface.

"I had the chance to test on gravel earlier this year. I had a really positive feeling, which I am sure we will find again in these last three events of the season. My aim is to do all I can to help the team in the manufacturers’ championship. I have a great belief in them and the car, so I am super excited. Anders and I are ready for this and we hope it will be the start of something more long-term.”

Mikkelsen's switch leaves Hayden Paddon without a WRC drive for the first time since January 2015. The Kiwi has suffered miserable season which began with tragedy in Monte-Carlo. He's stood on the podium on just one occasion and recently wrote off his 2017 season.  

It's unclear whether Paddon will return before the season concludes and if the 30-year-old will remain with the team.  

A week after a tough ride at Rallye Deutschland, Hayden Paddon will be be back on reassuringly familiar ground this weekend when he tackles new Zealand's Rally.

Taking advantage of the six-week break before the WRC's next event in Spain, Paddon returned to his homeland immediately after Germany ready for the one-day rally on Saturday 26 August, which is round four of the New Zealand Rally Championship. 

Paddon will drive an AP4+ spec Hyundai NZ i20 accompanied by his former WRC co-driver John Kennard. It will be the first time that Kennard has co-driven for Paddon since Rally Argentina in April. 
 
“I’m really looking forward the whole event; it will be great to get back in the car with John again, and enjoy the relaxed atmosphere, the driving, and the good people in our fantastic New Zealand rally community," Paddon said.

“I’ve never done this rally or these stages before, so it will be a new experience. It looks like a sunny, cold week, so will be a perfect weekend for rallying."

The rally marks the first competitive outing this year for Paddon in his domestic-spec i20 and he tested it this week before the seven stage, 135km rally. 

Returning to the co-driver's seat, Kennard said: “This weekend in Coromandel is really just about getting out and having some fun on a rally again after the high-stress environment of WRC. It’ll also be cool to be back in the car with Hayden and certainly a thrill to be back on some of the best rally roads in the world.”