Today it’s a hot hatchback challenge, between a Mini John Cooper Works 3dr hatch – let’s call it the Mini JCW – and the Abarth 595 Competizione.

These are two lairy, good fun, wildly characterful hot hatches. They might not be the ultimate in keenness – you’d look to something like the Ford Fiesta ST if you wanted the greatest all rounder in the class – but they both offer something unique and entertaining.

The Mini JCW has a big 2.0-litre turbocharged engine with plenty of power and its sophisticated chassis ought to make it very capable.

The Abarth 595 is a more curious hatch – a city car with aggressive looks and the aggression turned up to 11.

We like them both. But which will our expert road testers, Mauro Calo and Matt Prior, think is the best? Join us on the roads of Wales in the height of, er, summer, as we find out.

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Track battle: 2020 Ford Focus ST vs Honda Civic Type R | Autocar: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNZG3NvB5_0

2019 Ford Focus ST | A true Golf GTI rival? | Autocar: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWh0iOE7R4Q&t=239s

Hot hatch track battle: 2019 Ford Fiesta ST v Mini Cooper S v Toyota Yaris GRMN | Autocar: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMfxma5aVxM&t=2s

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Watch the full episode on MotorTrend: https://bit.ly/35nahxe
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We awoke in the wild next to the Alaskan Pipeline and high-tailed it up the Denali Highway while fall colors bloomed all around us. We dumped gear to lighten the loads just outside of Denali National Park and then hit the Stampede Trail, which leads to the “Magic Bus” made famous by the book and movie about Christopher McCandless’ ill-fated journey, Into the Wild. #UA2019

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Departing the sleepy town of Glenallen, the group meandered over trestle bridges and cut through tall forests towards McCarthy, Alaska where the incredibly preserved Kennecott Mine lies at the foot of a receding glacier. Bear roamed wild on the access road leading up to the mine where we found vintage 4x4s interspersed with all sort of early 20th Century mining goodies before we headed back out for a remote campsite with moose and bear track in abundance.