Hugh Chambers, CEO of the Motorsport UK, has been working to bring WRC festivities back to the island nation since 2019, the last year a WRC rally was held in Wales. In recent years, the conversation has largely revolved around Bobby Willis’s initiative to bring a WRC event to Northern Ireland, but now a “new” contender may be joining the race.
Chambers and the chairman of the Motorsport UK, David Richards, met with representatives of the WRC Promoter at Rally Sweden, and this time discussions were held about organizing a WRC rally in Scotland. It is understood that the earliest return of Rally GB could be in 2026.
“We met with David (Richards) and Hugh Chambers and had some very initial discussions. I would say it’s at very, very initial stages from their side. We’ll just continue to work with them,” WRC event director Simon Larkin tells Autosport.
“They’ve asked for some details from us and some proposals from us and we’ll do that in the next few weeks and give them some more data to go on.”
Chambers has long expressed a strong will for the return of the British WRC event. However, funding has repeatedly been an issue.
“We are looking at all the home nations, revisiting Wales and having conversations in Scotland and looking at the North of England. We won’t stop. There is no question that it is massive unfinished business for us to get the WRC back,” Chambers says.
According to Autosport, the Scottish project is currently the most viable option for the return of Rally GB. However, international rallies will return to Britain this year, as Rali Ceredigion in Wales will host a European Rally Championship event at the end of August and beginning of September.
There’s a possibility, though, that Britain might lose its status to Ireland, which is also aiming to host a WRC event. The national federation’s idea is that Waterford, Limerick, and Kerry could host the WRC on a rotational basis, should the project succeed. This project also depends on funding, as 15 million euros are sought from the Irish government to secure a three-year WRC contract.
“If we do this Ireland deal, we need to consider whether we need a round in the UK as well. What sort of spread of events do we want throughout Europe? The demand for the slots is heavy both inside Europe and outside of it,” Simon Larkin summarizes.
In addition to the aforementioned countries, the United States, Paraguay, and Saudi Arabia are also attempting to join the WRC calendar in the coming years.
