Earlier this year, the FIA proposed major changes to the WRC. Significant changes are planned for the next season. The biggest proposed change has been the plan to phase out the current hybrid units already next season, in the middle of the current homologation cycle.
WRC teams Toyota, Hyundai, and M-Sport drafted a joint statement to the FIA, opposing this change.
The WRC Commission met on Monday and Tuesday in Geneva, Switzerland, to discuss the changes. The teams demanded that the current hybrid units be retained as originally planned until 2026.
While the teams have been receptive to sporting changes, they have opposed technical changes on such a rapid timeline. If the changes were implemented in the way the FIA has proposed, manufacturers would have only about half a year to implement the technical changes.
According to the FIA, the outcome of the meeting was overall positive, and progress was made.
“We are engaged in specific discussions with the stakeholders regarding the shorter-term technical developments for 2025 and 2026, around which concerns have been raised by the manufacturer teams that are currently under consideration,” an FIA spokesperson stated, according to Autosport.
The FIA also mentioned that discussions will continue, and further meetings have already been scheduled.
“The only target remains the safeguarding and strengthening of the world’s premier rally category, and we are confident that we will find collaborative solutions to the issues that have been raised,” the FIA spokesperson continued.
It is not yet known what these “collaborative solutions” are, but the issue is expected to be resolved by the latest in June, when the World Motor Sport Council meets.
