Wales rally gb could have later date in’19

The date for next year’s Wales Rally GB is set to be discussed at a meeting of the World Rally Championship Commission in Paris next week.

The series’ 2019 calendar is the first of two topics to be discussed by the Commission in an effort to nail down a schedule of rallies for next year. The other point of discussion will be potential changes to the future of the support series – with a possible manufacturer award being introduced at WRC2 level.

Monte Carlo, Sweden and Mexico are widely expected to run as the first three rounds of the 2019 WRC and each event has announced a date – but the FIA has yet to confirm any dates so far for next season.

There’s increasing disquiet among the stakeholders, with one source telling MN: “This is getting a little bit crazy. We will be in the middle of October and still talking, talking about what could be the rallies next year. We understand the [WRC] Promoter has put in front of FIA the options, but still we know nothing.”

There’s speculation that Britain’s round of the WRC could move back to the end of the season, with Australia tipped to move forward, possibly as far as August.