Hankook: WRC's Tire Partner 2026
On January 21, 2026, Hankook Tire, a leading global tire manufacturer, officially commenced its exclusive tire supply mission for the 2026 FIA World Rally Championship (WRC). With the start of the 94th Monte Carlo Rally, Hankook, as the exclusive tire supplier for all WRC classes, will provide core technical support to all participating vehicles with customized high-performance rally tires, entering the fierce competition of the new season.
The Monte Carlo Rally, known as "the most unpredictable race on Earth," has become Hankook Tire's first testing ground for its technology this year. Hankook has a long-standing partnership with the WRC, first becoming the official tire supplier in 2014.
Leveraging its continuous technical experience accumulated in events such as the FIA European Rally Championship (ERC), Hankook signed a three-year exclusive supply agreement with the WRC in November 2024, exclusively supplying tires for WRC1, WRC2, WRC3, and the junior WRC series starting from the 2025 season. 2026 marks a continuation and deepening of this long-term partnership, representing a crucial phase.
This year's Monte Carlo Rally spans Monaco and France, featuring 17 special stages from January 22nd to 25th, covering a total distance of 339 kilometers. The varied climate and road conditions of the Alpine foothills—including tarmac, mud, snow, and ice—place extremely demanding requirements on tire performance. To address this, Hankook has tailored a tire matrix specifically for rally racing to tackle the challenges of different stages.
For tarmac sections, Hankook introduces the Ventus Z215 tire, which, with its precise handling tuning and superior cornering stability, ensures consistent performance on both dry and wet tarmac, providing drivers with exceptional handling feedback.
Facing icy and snow-covered stages, the Winter i*cept SR20 tire employs a dual-version strategy: the studded version significantly enhances grip on ice with special studs, while the studless version improves snow adaptability through an optimized rubber compound, comprehensively solving the challenges of low-temperature and complex road conditions. All racing tires are FIA certified and have undergone iterative upgrades based on last season's racing data and in-depth collaboration with participating manufacturers.
Hankook Tire is one of the few brands to sponsor two top-tier FIA racing series, having already become the exclusive technology partner for Formula E since the 2022/2023 season. This continued involvement in the WRC further strengthens its technological footprint covering top-level motorsport in both gasoline and electric vehicles.
Leveraging its experience accumulated in over 70 global motorsport events, Hankook effectively feeds its technological breakthroughs in extreme racing environments into the development of civilian tires, achieving a two-way empowerment of track technology and road products.
During the new season, Hankook will also launch a series of brand activation programs. At rounds of the Croatian Rally and the Portuguese Rally, interactive "Brand World" display areas will be set up in the pit lanes. Meanwhile, the "Track Reception" program, launched in designated race areas, will provide global partners, customers, and fans with an immersive brand experience. Jonah Siebel, General Manager of WRC Promoter GmbH, previously stated that Hankook's technical prowess demonstrated in its ERC partnership is convincing, and he looks forward to its tires achieving further success at the Monte Carlo Rally.
Starting January 21st, Hankook Tires will accompany the WRC calendar through 14 rounds across Europe, Africa, South America, and Asia, continuously validating product performance and technical reliability in extreme road conditions worldwide.
This journey, beginning in Monte Carlo, is not only a significant milestone for Hankook in its deep involvement in global motorsport but will also inject strong momentum into performance innovation across the entire tire industry, showcasing its brand philosophy of "track-forged technology" to global consumers.
