The future of the World Rally Championship is currently under discussion, and official decisions are expected soon. Both the technical and sporting regulations, as well as the competition format, are under review.
Hyundai’s team boss Abiteboul is accustomed to expressing his opinions clearly. According to Abiteboul, the FIA and WRC Promoter, who are influential in the background of the World Rally Championship, should keep things more firmly in their hands.
“In WRC, we often complain about the format of the events. We discuss this with the FIA and the WRC Promoter, but this aspect is not decided by these two entities. It is the organizers who establish it,” Abiteboul told the French magazine Autohebdo.
“For example, we have to visit certain cities, and the service park is often part of the organizers’ business plan. This creates complexity. If tomorrow we all decide that we no longer want a service park, is it possible within the current structure? I don’t think so.”
Abiteboul also raised another example from Rally de Portugal, where it was decided to send the top class cars to the special stages on Friday with four-minute intervals.
“In your opinion, who made this decision? The clerk of the course. Can you imagine in another sport that a local person makes this type of decision? While other categories have complete control over many decisions regarding promotion, organization, the structure of the day, and even from a sporting perspective, in the WRC, the two governing entities do not have this power,” Abiteboul blasted.
“Someone once said, ‘We need to stop being guests at our own events.’ We need to take back control, and I’m not just talking about the teams. Without this, every change we wish to make will not achieve its goal due to the fragmentation of decisions.”
The World Rally Championship season continues this weekend with the Sardinian round, which starts on Friday afternoon.
