By now we’ve all become familiar with the bravado and machismo of Mini and their in your face marketing techniques. After teasing (annoying) Porsche in what ended up being a massively predictable outcome, Mini has now set it sites on an actual racing venue with actual world class machines, the World Rally Championship (WRC).

Mini announced Tuesday their return to the WRC after a 50 year hiatus.  That’s right, Mini’s of old used to toss it up in world rallying and actually won quite a few events with the iconic Cooper S including the prestigious Monte Carlo Rally in ’64, ’65 and ’67.

Although we adore the Cooper S of old, its 70hp 1275cc 4 cylinder doesn’t quite cut the mustard for modern rallying. Enter WRC aficionado, Prodrive. With Prodrive’s help and expertise, Mini plans to field a Countryman starting with a few select venues in 2011 and the full season in 2012. This isn’t your run of the mill Countryman, as you can see from the rendition above. As per WRC regulations, the Countryman will have a 1.6 liter turbocharged 4 cylinder motor with all-wheel-drive (of course).

The Mini will be a welcome addition to the current shortlist of factory backed WRC contenders including the Ford Focus RS and Citroen C4.

We are glad to see Mini returning to competition with the Countryman although the classic Cooper S will always hold a spot in our hearts. Which rallying Mini do you prefer, the old or the new?

[Autoblog, Brandon Christiansen]

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