MINI is competing in the Rebelle Rally for the first time, with the green flag dropping at Las Vegas Motor Speedway at 7 AM PT on Thursday, October 8. The entry is a MINI Countryman Untamed Edition, the adventure-focused variant MINI revealed on October 6, and the rally serves as its competition debut over roughly 1,500 miles of terrain across Nevada, California, and Utah. Teams navigate with paper maps, a compass, and a roadbook, with GPS prohibited, and MINI joins Subaru among the manufacturers backing entries this year following Team 200’s return in the Forester Hybrid.
Felicia Killman drives the MINI entry. She competes in the American Rally Association, has experience in both the driver’s and co-driver’s seats, and has campaigned a MINI in stage rally competition. Erika Ferrer, a member of BMW Group’s corporate communications team in Mexico, navigates. Ferrer began her motorsport career managing championship rally teams before moving into the co-driver’s seat, where she won three consecutive regional co-driver championships in Mexico and co-drove for Benito Guerra at La Carrera Panamericana. The two prepared with field training on dunes, rock, and loose surfaces along with map-and-compass navigation practice.
A BMW Group engineering team prepared the Countryman for the event alongside its regular duties, with support from partners including Thule, DealerTire, Pelican Cases, Morimoto Lighting, Heinlein Racing Development, Peak Design, and GoPro. The production Untamed Edition adds a suspension lift, all-terrain tires, and standard ALL4 all-wheel drive to the Countryman, and will be offered in the U.S. on the gasoline Countryman S ALL4 and the electric Countryman SE ALL4. The S ALL4 Untamed Edition starts at $45,250 including $1,350 destination, with SE ALL4 pricing to follow. Production begins in November 2026 and U.S. deliveries start in early 2027.
MINI’s rally history includes overall wins for the original Mini Cooper S at the Monte Carlo Rally in 1964, 1965, and 1967, and later success at the Dakar Rally. The 2026 Rebelle Rally runs October 7 to 17, with live tracking and daily coverage available through the Rebelle Rally website and its YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook channels.
GalleryPhotos by MINI
