The Ford Focus World Rally Car that legendary Scottish driver Colin McRae famously rolled while leading Rally GB – costing him and co-driver Nicky Grist the world championship – is coming up for auction in the UK next month.
It’s expected to sell for £300,000-£350,000 ($AU570,000-$660,000).
McRae joined Ford in 1999, following a successful five-year stint with the Subaru World Rally Team that saw the Scot crowned world champion in 1995.
He followed that title success with one third-place and two second-place finishes in the world championship before accepting a £6 million ($AU11.4 million) offer to join Ford, making him the highest-paid rally driver in history at the time.
While title success eluded McRae at Ford in 1999 and 2000, the following year looked a lot more promising. McRae and Grist won three straight rallies to set up a title showdown with Subaru’s Richard Burns heading into the season-ending Rally Great Britain.
But when McRae spectacularly crashed out of the lead, sending his Focus into a series of rolls from which both he and Grist were lucky to walk away from, the title went to Burns.
The destroyed Focus – registration Y4 FMC – was rebuilt by the Ford factory M-Sport team and used on selected rallies in 2002 before passing into the hands of privateers.
It has now been brought back to life in its period-correct Martini-liveried glory and painstakingly restored to full 2001-era WRC spec – sequential gearbox, four-wheel drive, suspension and brakes.
It also comes with its full documented history, including its all-important official FIA Passport Technique, a full set of the specific homologation papers pertaining to Y4 FMC, and detailed set-up information from M-Sport.
The Ford Focus WRC is being sold by Silverstone Auctions and goes under the hammer on 5 March, 2022.
Keyword: Colin McRae’s 2001 Ford Focus world rally car set to fetch huge money at auction