RALLY GB’S FIGHT TO MAINTAIN WORLD TITLE CALENDAR SLOT
Axe for Great Britain’s 2020 showpiece throws the WRC and British rallying into a tailspin
British rallying is reeling from a double blow after Wales Rally GB was officially called off last week.
Motorsport News had closed for press when confirmation came through last week that there would be no Rally GB for the first time since 1967 due to Covid-19 restrictions.
As well as the loss of Britain’s round of the WRC, the British Rally Championship has also been scrapped.
Rally GB had been due to host a BRC double-header but its cancellation means there won’t be enough events to justify going further with the 2020 BRC series that had completed just one round to date.
With as many as 18 rallies chasing a slot on a likely trimmed 10-round WRC schedule in 2021 as economic uncertainty bites, Rally GB’S fate is in the hands of the FIA World Motor Sport Council members who meet online on Friday to ratify the revised 2020 dates and those for next year.
Wales Rally GB will have to fight for a slot on next year’s World Rally Championship calendar, as Motorsport News understands its absence could be for the long rather than short term.
After the Covid-19 axe fell on Britain’s World Rally Championship counter last week, the likelihood of another reduced WRC schedule in 2021 – this time triggered by a dire global economic outlook – means there is no guarantee that Wales Rally GB will be one of the chosen few next year.
The rally’s fate will become clear when the FIA World Motor Sport Council members meet online on Friday this week to agree the calendars for this year and next.
“We want it to be in Wales,” Hugh Chambers, Motorsport UK CEO, told Motorsport News. “The Welsh Government wants it to be in
Wales. There is a strong appetite from the teams, the FIA and the WRC Promoter. But there are a lot of conflicting pressures on that calendar in terms of the economic reality of the number of events that will run next year.
“All the vehicle manufacturers are coming off a very, very difficult period for new car sales. And the full impact of that will not have been felt yet. It’s fairly predictable that [manufacturers are] going to be looking at [discretionary expenditure] very carefully so there will be a lot of pressure on the number of rounds.”
The power of 10
MN understands a 10-round calendar in 2021 would represent a best-case scenario. But with 18 events potentially vying for a date, a number of rallies will face uncertain futures.
Although Welsh Government support is in place for one more year, with the UK economy decimated, non-essential expenditure using public funds will become increasingly difficult to justify, in spite of the £9 millionplus benefit the event brings to Wales.
“I’m under no illusions that whilst we have been in the calendar for the last 50 years, next year is far from certain,” said Chambers. “But the UK is one of the biggest car markets, one of the biggest consumer markets in the world. And it’s a hugely popular event as a sporting spectacle and a driving challenge.”
Global approach vital
M-sport Ford World Rally Team head Richard Millener said losing Wales Rally GB from the 2020 calendar was “very disappointing” but accepts GB is no more important than any other event.
“As much as we’re all in Europe, a lot of car sales and biggest markets for the manufacturers are probably external to Europe,” Millener told MN. “You need to make sure you’re a proper world championship so you need these events outside Europe. Yes, they’re expensive, but we’ve all got to remember we’re signing up for a world championship. You do have to expect to go out there.”
NI’S hopes fade
Chambers fears Covid-19 will scupper any possibility of Rally GB relocating to Northern Ireland in the immediate future should the event remain in the WRC.
He said: “With the pandemic it’s going to make it a lot harder for new major events to emerge if they require government funding. Governments are going to be more risk-averse and are going to have a lot of pressure on budgets. To expect anybody to be funding a brand-new major event is probably going to be a bigger challenge than it was before.”