Derry’s Kris Meeke will spearhead the Citroën Total Abu Dhabi World Rally Team for 2018, while Waterford’s Craig Breen will drive the second Citroën C3 WRC at ten rounds of the championship.

Khalid Al Qassimi will appear in a third car at a handful of rallies while Sébastien  Loeb will be making a much-anticipated return to the WRC with the brand in Mexico, Corsica and Catalonia. Meanwhile, Stéphane Lefebvre will be tasked with driving the Citroën C3 R5 on its debut season in the WRC2.

Kris Meeke, now capable of winning on any surface, has demonstrated by the five WRC rallies he has won since starting to compete for Citroën at world level in 2013. On the return of Citroën to the WRC as a works team this year, the 38 year-old bagged the Citroën C3 WRC's maiden victory in only its third event, on the Mexican gravel, before also excelling on the tarmac in Corsica. The second part of the season confirmed his ability to take on the responsibilities of team leader. The highlight being a second, resounding win on the gravel and tarmac of Rally Catalunya, and a determined attitude, befitting that of a leader.

Meeke will be supported at ten rounds of the championship by Craig Breen, who enjoyed an incredibly consistent first full season in the WRC, so much so that he racked up no fewer than six fifth-place finishes. After learning about rallying at world level in 2016 as part of the Abu Dhabi Total WRT and finishing an impressive third overall in Finland, the 27 year-old Irishman is very determined to build on the experience acquired this year and secure more podiums in 2018.

Yves Matton, Citroën Racing Team Principal: "For 2018, we have decided to capitalise on what we've been building for a number of seasons now with Kris and Craig. Kris' speed is unquestionable, and with the more relaxed mindset he had at the end of the year, he proved he had it in him to be a leader. The aim will be to target podiums, secure some wins, but Kris can also go for position in the championship. Meanwhile, Craig proved that he was the perfect foil, with some very consistent performances. There is still room for him to improve and aim even higher.”

Kris Meeke said: "We learned a lot during the first season with the Citroën C3 WRC and we've gathered a lot of information to help us do better in 2018. Despite a few tough moments, we managed to show our potential. We are now going to try even harder to be more consistent on the variety of surfaces used in the championship. We won't be taking anything for granted but by working in a relaxed and calm manner, we can achieve good things. We'll be aiming to score heavily at Monte-Carlo and in Sweden in order to get off to a good start in this second campaign."

Craig Breen: "I'm delighted to stay with the team for another year. I had a lot of things to learn this first full year in the WRC, but I managed to be consistent. We also worked a lot on fine-tuning the handling of the Citroën C3 WRC, and the progress made on gravel at the end of the season fills me with optimism. We have to keep going in order to obtain even better results. In any case, I'm going to do everything I can to get my first win at events like Rally Finland or Wales GB Rally, where I have a bit of experience."