The WRC’s biggest problem is that there are only three teams competing in the top class. For years, there have been efforts to attract new car manufacturers, but even the current Rally1 regulations have not succeeded in this task.
Recently, wild rumours have been swirling around the WRC. News agency Reuters recently reported that the WRC’s Promoter might be willing to sell its commercial rights – in practice, the entire series could be for sale. The promoter has not commented on the matter.
Within the sport, however, the news has sparked a lot of discussion. Should there be concern?
RallyJournal.com posed the question to M-Sport Ford team principal Richard Millener. According to the British team boss, there is no more cause for concern than there has been before.
“Business is business,” Millener responded coolly.
“The goal of businessmen and investors is to build an asset that increases in value and then move it on. So, I don’t really know any details at all about how realistic that is or how real the story is. It could be a nice PR exercise sometimes to gain some momentum around things as well,” Millener laughed.
According to Millener, a change in ownership could also be a positive turning point for the WRC.
“I think as long as the sport is protected in the right way, it would be good. Outside investment can often bring new opportunities to develop things quicker than before. So, let’s see,” Millener pondered.
“The promoter has done a lot in the last 18 months to try and move things forward and get things going. So, they’re on a good pathway. But we can always do more.”
In addition to the promoter, there has also been speculation about Hyundai’s future recently. Hyundai recently announced that it is heading into the WEC series with its Genesis brand. This has been seen as a sign that Hyundai might reduce its involvement in the WRC.
According to rumours, a private team might run Hyundai’s WRC operations from the 2026 season onwards. The operational model would be the same as M-Sport, which runs Ford cars.
“What I’ve read from the rumour is that it’s going to be like us. It would be a private company running the team on behalf of Hyundai. So, there will be enough investment and resources to make sure it’s run properly, but done by other people. But it’s a big task,” Millener assessed.
