Despite the corona pandemic: 2020 year of success for Abarth!

For Abarth, 2020 was a year full of success: In racing, the Abarth 124 rally won the FIA ​​R-GT Cup for the third time in a row - practically the Gran Turismo World Championship. The Formula 4 championships powered by Abarth in Germany and Italy continued to promote highly talented young racing drivers. In the Italian Formula 4, Gabriele Minì was the first time an Italian won the title. The year 2020 was also commercially successful: the market share rose by almost 50 percent compared to the previous year, setting a new record. 595 percent of the special models 595 Scorpioneoro and 80 Monster Energy Yamaha were sold outside the domestic Italian market. In addition to its victories on the racetrack, Abarth Digital Day earned a Guinness World Record ™ - for the largest digital meeting to date.

2020 year of success for Abarth!

In the end, despite all the complications, the past went more than satisfactorily for the Abarth brand: it was able to "bring in" major victories on the rally slopes and the race tracks. And the new special series contributed to the commercial success in 2020.

Luca Napolitano, Head of Branding at Fiat and Abarth in the EMEA economic area: "We are proud to be able to celebrate the FIA ​​R-GT Cup for the third time in a row with the Abarth 2020 rally in 124. Basically, the R-GT Cup is the Gand Turismo World Championship - and the Italian Andrea Mabellini won this title for Abarth. He also secured the Abarth Rally Cup. What is certain is that after three triumphs in a row and after more than 124 victories, the 100 is the car to beat in the R-GT class. But I would also like to congratulate the highly talented champions of our two Formula 4 series: In Italy, Gabriele Minì, a local talent, won for the first time, and the Briton Jonny Edgar prevailed in Germany. International motorsport can expect a lot from these two young drivers in the future."

The promotion of young talent - up to seven drivers in the top ten of the two Formula 4 championships are newcomers - has always been part of the brand essence of Abarth. From the very beginning, racing has also been the best and toughest terrain to put engines and technology solutions through their paces under extreme conditions and to increase the performance and reliability of both racing vehicles and road vehicles. Technology transfer is always at the core of what Abarth does. Despite the difficult time, Abarth was also commercially successful. The keys to this were the two special series 2000 Scorpioneoro and 595 Monster Energy Yamaha, each limited to 595 units. Compared to the previous year, the market share increased by 50 percent, over 80 percent of the vehicles were sold outside the domestic Italian market.

Based on these successes, the brand with the scorpion in its logo is now ready to take on the new challenges both in motorsport and on the international market. Abarth will continue to refresh the range in 2021 - with new colors, new surfaces and many new details that will highlight the double spirit of the brand. The new range will be presented shortly and will be available from dealers in the first quarter. Abarth will also further cement its commitment to racing through its technology partnership with the Formula 4 championships. From a sporting point of view, this format fits perfectly with the values ​​of the Abarth brand. In addition, cooperation with private rally teams will continue as part of the Abarth Customer Project. Abarth will provide technical and technological support to drivers and teams in the pit lane.

Abarth 595 Scorpioneoro and Abarth 595 Monster Energy Yamaha - the new double soul of the Abarth brand

The technology transfer from racing to the production of road vehicles is illustrated by the two special models Abarth 595 Scorpioneoro and Abarth 595 Monster Energy Yamaha presented in autumn. Both models are equipped with the 1,4-liter Abarth T-Jet engine, which also forms the basis for the Formula 4 monoposti. Both new special models embody the double soul of the brand as well as two of its core values ​​- tradition and driving pleasure.

The adrenaline-filled Abarth 595 Monster Energy Yamaha series is the perfect expression of the common ideals of the Abarth and Yamaha brands - and they are based on performance, racing, technical innovation and driving pleasure. The new model was manufactured in a limited edition of 2.000 pieces and is inspired by the paintwork and the interior of the YZR-M1 Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP 2020. The "Monster" claw has been added on the bonnet. It pays homage to the new collaboration with the renowned energy drink. The connection between Abarth and Yamaha has existed since 2015 and will be intensified again with the introduction of the new special series. Once again, "hot" vehicles will overcome sport and racing barriers by being "let loose on the road" with many adrenaline-rich special series such as the Abarth 595 Yamaha Factory Racing Edition (2015), the two-seater Abarth 695 Biposto Yamaha Factory Racing Edition (2015 ) and most recently the Abarth 695 XSR Yamaha Limited Edition from 2017.

The second special series, the exclusive Abarth 595 Scorpioneoro, is also a limited edition of just 2.000 vehicles. It pays homage to the extravagant and rare A112 Abarth "Targa Oro", because it was inspired by this legend. The model was exclusive as early as 1979 because only 150 cars were made at the time. The 595 Scorpioneoro now picks up on the design: the special model has golden details, a refined interior and a wide range of equipment features - and stands in the tradition of Italian “granturismo” milestones.

The sporting successes of the 2020 season

One of the big triumphs of last season was the brand's third victory with the Scorpion in the FIA ​​R-GT Cup: the young Italian Andrea Mabellini won the title for the Bernini Rally Team together with his co-driver Virginia Lenzi. He follows in the footsteps of French Raphaël Astier and Italian Enrico Brazzoli, the 2018 and 2019 champions respectively. Mabellini also won the Abarth Rally Cup 2020, the European one-make cup of the Abarth 124 rally.

The Formula 4 championships powered by Abarth in Germany and Italy, whose schedules were closely interlinked, also offered pure adrenaline. The Monoposti were powered by a 118 kW (160 PS) T-Jet engine from Abarth. Overall, there was exciting and high-class motorsport with 18 different winners and 23 drivers on the podium. At the end of the championships there could only be one champion: In the German ADAC Formula 4 powered by Abarth, the 16-year-old Briton Jonny Edgar prevailed. During the season he drove six wins and 13 placements. Nevertheless, he only won the title in the last race - after a close battle with the American Jak Crawford and the Finn Elias Seppänen. It was also emotional and hot in Italy. At the end of the seventh season, an Italian triumphed for the first time, the only 15-year-old Gabriele Minì. In the end, he had four wins and 15 placements. In contrast to Edgar, Minì already secured the title on the penultimate race weekend.

Formula 4 was founded in 2014 on the basis of an idea by FIA President Jean Todt. Abarth was chosen as the technical partner for the delivery of their engines. Thanks to its excellent power-to-weight ratio, the 118 kW (160 hp) T-Jet engine with a 1,4-liter displacement guarantees an exciting and high-quality competition. The top speed of the Tatuus-Monoposti is 240 km / h, from 0-100 km / h they accelerate in about 5 seconds. The proven reliability of the engines ensures that teams and drivers can have the costs for a season under control. The racing car therefore meets all FIA requirements for the training of future Formula Class drivers.

Thanks to professional support, young talent is sustainably promoted. Since 2014, more than 350 drivers have taken to the track to put their skills to the test. In some cases they have recommended themselves for higher honors: For example, Lance Stroll, who won the first edition of the Italian Formula 2014 powered by Abarth in 4, is now a Formula 1 driver. Mick Schumacher from Kerpen, son of the seven-time Formula 1 World Champion Michael Schumacher, also drove in Formula 2016 in 4. In 2020 he won the Formula 2 World Championship and is now also recommended for the premier class

Success on digital platforms too

The large family of Abarthisti fans was able to celebrate “their” Abarth Day again last year. However, in most countries it took place virtually on the occasion of the given occasion. Still, it became a huge success. The community of the brand with the scorpion even set up a Guinness World Record ™: Abarth Digital Day has now officially become the largest digital meeting in the world. Thanks for this record goes to the many fans who, among other things, uploaded 868 photos of their Abarth vehicles to the special Facebook page within just one hour.

In Germany, the 7th Abarth Day took place last year due to the current situation as a very exclusive event with a limited number of participants. But everyone who was unable to attend the event also experienced the spirit of Abarth up close via the brand's online and social media channels.

Of course that had not happened yet!

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