The WRC working group, under the FIA, announced at the end of February its plans for changes: by the 2025 season, Rally1 cars will no longer have hybrid units, in addition to power being reduced with a smaller air restrictor and the scaling back of aerodynamic solutions.
Neuville declared in an interview with the French magazine Autohebdo that the regulatory guidelines are one of the reasons he is considering the continuation of his career. The Hyundai star announced that the 2024 season might be his last in the World Rally Championship.
Read more: Thierry Neuville makes a surprising revelation – will the rally star end his career?
Neuville suggests that the FIA and the WRC are making a mistake if the guidelines are implemented as they currently stand. Final decisions on the future rules are set to be made in June.
“I like that we have spectacular cars that are impressive both for the drivers and the public. They make people dream. This step back that’s looming, which doesn’t add any extra value either for the manufacturers or for the fans, I don’t see the point.” Neuville blasted to Autohebdo.
“I must say, the FIA’s announcements shocked me. I don’t understand why they decided to implement such unstable rules for the next two years without knowing what they (FIA) really want or where they intend to take us.”
The rationale behind the guidelines is to increase competition in the championship’s premier class. Currently, only two full-fledged factory teams, Hyundai and Toyota, and the non-factory-supported M-Sport Ford, participate.
The hope is that more manufacturers will join in the future. However, according to Neuville, the FIA’s plans are not the right way to a better future.
“Tell me, which manufacturer will join during the transition period,” Neuville referred to the fact that the rules are supposed to be revised again after the 2025 and 2026 seasons.”
“For 2025, we need new cars, but the regulations will only be revealed in June, so who’s going to start making cars for 2025? Nobody. What about for 2026 without knowledge of the regulations? Nobody. And who wants to start making cars for 2027 when we still have to wait for the regulations to be created? Nobody. I don’t understand this.”
Plans are in place to introduce revised technical regulations for the 2026 season based on the current Rally1 concept. The new rules will coexist with the current Rally1 regulations in 2026. The cost of cars is intended to be capped at 400,000 euros.
Previously, Toyota’s team principal Jari-Matti Latvala has highlighted aspects of the guidelines that still need fine-tuning. According to Neuville, the situation is altogether confusing.
“It also goes against what the manufacturers had requested, which is to have stable regulations until the end of 2026. That gave us two years to do something solid from 2027.”
Neuville finds it astonishing that current teams are now forced to spend money on updating their cars. The Belgian also pointed out that manufacturers had contracts with hybrid unit supplier Compact Dynamics until the end of 2026.
“And there’s no one who can explain this. When you see all this, it feels like banging your head against the wall,” Neuville described.
