Skoda's factory IRC team will contest the next two South American rounds of the championship, the Czech firm has announced today.
Beyond admitting it will run an expanded IRC program this year, Skoda has not yet finalized its precise plans for 2010 – but Juho Hanninen and Jan Kopecky will make the trip across the Atlantic for the Curitiba Rally and Rally Argentina in March.
Skoda did not contest the Brazilian event last season, but it has competed on the WRC-qualifying Rally Argentina four times, with its best 2002 result coming in Carlos Paz when Toni Gardemeister placed his Octavia WRC in fifth place.
Skoda spokesperson Karel Pokorny said: "We will run two cars in Brazil and Argentina. Skoda has some experience in Argentina from the World Rally Championship but we have never been to Brazil, so that will be something new.
"We saw last year the pace of the Fabia Super 2000 on gravel on the [rallies in] Azores and Russia and we hope this will continue when we go to Brazil and Argentina."