CAPITO: MEEKE’S WIN DEVALUES CHAMPIONSHIP VW boss argues WRC perception suffers from one-time round winners

Kris Meeke’s Rally of Portugal victory will devalue the World Rally Championship, according to Volkswagen team principal Jost Capito.

The VW boss says the general public’s understanding of the sport is insufficient to ensure a clear picture of who is fighting for the championship.

Capito told MN: “If somebody of the calibre of Kris Meeke or Sebastien Loeb comes for three rallies, it’s clear they win and this devalues the whole championship, because the public doesn’t know why the guy who leads the championship has no chance to win. They think: ‘Ah, he’s not the real world champion because the other guy wins; this guy who has come three times, he should be the world champion’.”

Capito is lobbying this week’s WRC Commission to affect regulation change, forcing anybody not contesting the whole series to run first on the road.

“We have WRC Commission, let’s see what comes from there,” Capito said. “Everybody arrives here and we know Kris will win, if he doesn’t do a mistake there is no chance for anybody else. This is the third rally in a row where Seb [Ogier] knows he cannot win. And now he goes to Sardinia, knowing he can’t win no matter how well he drives. I think this is not the right thing.

“If the guys come in for one-by-one rallies, they have to open the road. This is a fairer solution: let the guys who fight for the championship have the chance to win over those who come here and there.”

Citroen team principal Yves Matton said: “Where is the problem? Kris is not fighting against a guy in the championship. If Sebastien is second [to Meeke in the rally] he is still taking more points than anybody else in the championship.”