Last year, Porsche teased a rally-bred machine based on the Cayman at the ADAC Rallye Deutchland event. The car ran a couple of stages, mostly for show, and we hoped that Porsche was testing the waters for a potential return to rally racing. The prototype’s appearance at the German rally was to see if there was any kind of interest for a race-ready version of Porsche’s entry-level machine, and apparently the feedback translated into one loud, resounding “YES! BUILD IT!”, because Stuttgart has decided to let it happen. That’s right…Porsche will return to World Rally Championship racing in 2020 with the 718 Cayman GT-4 Clubsport R-GT. 420 horsepower from a 3.8L flat-six is likely, plant-fiber composite body panels will be affixed, and the car will compete in the FIA’s R-GT class, where it will do battle with the Fiat Abarth 124 Rally and the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup R-GT. Ooooh, sibling rivalry!

The last time Porsche was truly serious about playing in the dirt, we got the 959, a technological masterpiece that became an orphan when Group B racing got canned after fatalities in 1986 forced the FIA to act. Since then, most of the Porsches that we’ve seen have been private entries in random rallies around Europe. We want to see these R-GTs flying in Finland, dammit! Kudos to Porsche for making this happen, and here’s to a great first season!