Next year's World Rally Championship has lost another leading manufacturer, after Skoda pulled their factory team.
The Czech manufacturer has been the leading team in the WRC2 Pro category, but says losing Kalle Rovanpera to Toyota was a key factor in their decision.
The 19-year old Finnish driver won the WRC2 Pro championship in Skoda's dominant Fabia R5.
Other drivers to have tasted success in the Fabia include Esapekka Lappi, Pontus Tidemand and Jan Kopecky.
Skoda Motorsport team manager Pavel Hortek confirmed the move during the brand's traditional end-of-season event in Prague.
"Of course, because we have no one to replace him. Oliver Solberg could be an option for someone to support, but not in a factory team," Hortek told Motorsport.com
"We have sold 328 cars and we have many customers, we don't have the capacity to maintain all that and also an official team. Having lost great drivers has been key."
Only Ford and Hyundai are potential factory entrants in the class next year, which will be known simply as WRC2.
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