World rally elite back on Kiwi gravel roads
Rally New Zealand had been working hard in the background trying to return the event to the WRC calendar for a number of years without luck, but everything fell into place for 2020.
The WRC has announced New Zealand is back on its calendar next year on September 3-5, for the first time since 2008.
‘‘The event alternated between Australia and New Zealand and then there was a deal that it would go to Australia for three years, which was 2013-15,’’ explained Rally NZ CEO Michael Goldstein.
‘‘So we started inquiring in 2015 about New Zealand’s turn, but essentially they’d signed up with Australia for the foreseeable future.
‘‘We gave it a good nudge in 2017 to have it in 2018 and Hayden Paddon was really invested in that process. We then parked it for a while but started up conversations again in 2018.
‘‘So we spoke to the promoters again and there became the option for a one-off event in 2020.
‘‘We think it’s really important to get the event back in New Zealand, to keep the momentum of having the world championships in New Zealand.
‘‘But that’s not just for the fans, but also the officials and volunteers. There is a skill and capability to run an event like this and if you let that go for a decade it gets harder to pick it up again.
‘‘So we wanted to get it back on whatever basis we can.’’
The WRC was unhappy with the Australian round being at Coffs Harbour and wanted it held in a place with a higher profile.
With no new location found, it’s opened up the opportunity for Rally NZ.
The news that Australia had lost the rally didn’t go down well with their media, but Rally Australia was quick to respond, saying it missed rotation.
‘‘We’re extremely proud of Rally Australia’s standing as one of the best-run WRC events over 27 years,’’ Rally Australia chairman Andrew Papadopoulos said.
‘‘The WRC is unquestionably one of the most exciting series in motorsport – and we’ll be ready to take our place again on the world stage from 2021.’’
Goldstein said their focus was out because of on delivering a great Rally New Zealand in 2020 and then seeing what happened after that.
‘‘Right now we’re just looking at next September and putting on a world class event,’’ he said.
‘‘We’ll take the future as it comes, we just need to put our best foot forward and show that New Zealand can keep hosting this at the level they expect.
‘‘2021 is a busy year for the event calendar in New Zealand [the America’s Cup for starters], but beyond that, who knows?
Oliver Ciesla, the managing director of WRC Promoter, the company that runs the championship, said it was great to have an event back in New Zealand.
‘‘As a promoter it is our desire to add to the calendar a certain proportion of change,’’ Ciesla told Stuff.
‘‘Especially to entertain the fans with new pictures and to bring the rally to where we know we have a fan base, but know we can’t be permanently.
‘‘At the same time, it’s also important for the sporting competition to not just repeat the same stages and roads that the drivers are familiar with, but it occasionally throw in a new sporting challenge and stages that none of the drivers have driven in the past.’’
It hasn’t been determined yet which roads will be used for the rally, but Ciesla said they’d look to show off New Zealand’s beauty.
‘‘We know that we will find picture postcard scenery for the filming we do and the TV programmes that we distribute around the world.
‘‘This, combined with the opportunity to host the service park, the hub of the weekend, in such a great city like Auckland is a really good combination for us.’’
The rally will be shown in New Zealand on Spark Sport as part of its WRC rights.