A host of stars from the World Rally Championship and circuit racing will gather at Sydney’s Olympic Stadium. Among them are nine-time WRC champion Sebastien Loeb, four-time Formula 1 world champion Sebastian Vettel, and seven-time World Rallycross champion Johan Kristoffersson.
Race of Champions kicks off on Friday with the Nations Cup, a competition between national teams. On Saturday, the stadium’s tarmac circuit will host the individual competition, a true battle of champions.
Reigning champion, Swedish veteran Mattias Ekström, had to withdraw from the event due to illness. However, the previous Nations Cup winners, rally stars Petter and Oliver Solberg, will be competing again for Norway.
Finland will be represented by two former Formula 1 drivers, both of whom have experience in rally cars. Mercedes’ current reserve driver Valtteri Bottas and Heikki Kovalainen, who has been competing in rallying in recent years, will form the Finnish duo.
Bottas and Kovalainen will face a tough challenge right from the Nations Cup group stage, as they will take on Loeb’s French team and the Team All Stars duo of Kristoffersson and Australian racer Chaz Mostert. Mostert was called up at the last minute after Ekström was forced to withdraw.
Loeb will compete for France alongside young talent Victor Martins, who has been racing in Formula 2 in recent seasons.
In Group B, two Australian teams will battle for a place in the next round, along with New Zealand’s squad, which features experienced rally ace Hayden Paddon. Group C will see drivers from Germany, the USA, and Great Britain compete for advancement. As defending champions, Norwegian duo Petter and Oliver Solberg automatically advance to the quarter-finals.
For the individual competition, drivers have been divided into six groups. The groups are structured so that rally drivers are in the upper half of the bracket, while circuit racers are placed in the lower half.
Throughout the weekend, the star drivers will compete in six different vehicles:
Group stage, Nations Cup:
| Group A | Group B | Group C |
|---|---|---|
| Team Finland (Heikki Kovalainen, Valtteri Bottas | Team Australia Supercars (Jamie Whincup, Will Brown) | Team Germany (Sebastian Vettel, Mick Schumacher) |
| Team All Stars (Johan Kristoffersson, Chaz Mostert) | Team New Zealand (Hayden Paddon, Louis Sharp) | Team USA (Travis Pastrana, Kurt Busch) |
| Team France (Sebastien Loeb, Victor Martins) | Team Australia Off-road (Molly Taylor, Toby Price) | Team Great Britain (David Coulthard, Alister McRae) |
Norway’s Petter and Oliver Solberg advance directly to the quarter-finals.
Group stage, Race of Champions:
| Group A | Group B | Group C | Group D | Group E | Group F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Johan Kristoffersson (SWE) | Travis Pastrana (USA) | Petter Solberg (NOR) | Sebastian Vettel (GER) | Valtteri Bottas (FIN) | Will Brown (AUS) |
| Molly Taylor (AUS) | Heikki Kovalainen (FIN) | Toby Price (AUS) | Jamie Whincup (AUS) | Kurt Busch (USA) | David Coulthard (GBR) |
| eROC winner | Oliver Solberg (SWE) | Hayden Paddon (NZL) | Louis Sharp (NZL) | Chaz Mostert (AUS) | Victor Martins (FRA) |
Sébastien Loeb (FRA) and Mick Schumacher (GER) advance directly to the quarter-finals.
