These five names were finalized after a painstaking selection process that, in some cases, took into account championship results or, in others, combined driving tests, psychological and fitness assessment, as well as interviews and media training.

They now have the opportunity of a lifetime before them – and six chances to get it right. But the Pirelli Star Driver programme is not just about handing the drivers a key to some rally cars and telling them to get on with it. Away from the rallies, they have the support and backing of Pirelli to mould them into the complete professional package that modern drivers have to be.

An example of this in action was the pre-season training, which the five drivers and co-drivers completed in March before Rally of Turkey. The 10 men undertook an intensive training and education course in Edinburgh, UK, before leaving for Pisa, Italy, to test the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X they will drive on six rounds of the WRC.

The training session worked to the timetable of a round of the WRC, with the first evening simulating the ceremonial start or superspecial stage of an event. Two long days followed, before a further early start and finish just after lunch on the third day. In that time, the crews were working on a wide variety of aspects of preparation for the WRC, including: sponsorship and the business of rallying; pacenotes; performance profiling; physiology and conditioning; fitness and injury prevention; career management; aerobic training and flexibility; media and presentation skills; nutrition; safety and incident response; heat chamber work; hydration strategy; goal-setting and anti-doping regulations in motorsport.

As well as a theoretical approach, drivers were also set tasks to take a practical look at all of the above. For example, to underline the importance of nutrition, the crews were given a set sum of money and told to go to the local supermarket to buy their lunch, which was evaluated for nutritional value.