The governing body revealed an extensive concept for the future at Wednesday’s World Motor Sport Council which will see the WRC undergo myriad changes to its technical and sporting regulations beginning next year.
This vision, which aims to increase manufacturer participation and grow the championship, has been created by a new working group headed by FIA deputy president Robert Reid and former WRC team boss David Richards.
The current Rally1 hybrid-powered cars won’t see out the original five-year homologation cycle agreement that Toyota, Hyundai and Ford, through M-Sport, committed to.
It has been decided that from next year the control 100kW hybrid units will be removed from the Rally1 cars, which will also have their performance decreased thanks to a reduction in aerodynamics and the air restrictor.
Removing the control 100kW hybrid kit will reduce the cost of the Rally1 car, currently priced at around 1 million euro, by approximately 150,000 euro, but teams will now have to re-design elements of their cars in time for the 2025 season.
These Rally1 cars will be eligible to compete in the 2025 and 2026 seasons. This will overlap with the introduction of new Rally1 regulations in 2026, which will become the mainstay for the category from 2027.
The 2026 spec cars will be capped at 400,000 euro and based around the current Rally1 concept but will feature a larger spaceframe chassis utilising a common safety cell to reduce costs and allow both manufacturers and tuners to develop cars.
The chassis will be able to accommodate bodywork based on cars in the B class, C class, compact, SUV and concept car segments and will produce approximately 330 horsepower.
It is hoped this will entice new marques and teams to the top level. However, in theory, two slightly different versions of Rally1 car could be seen competing under the Rally1 class in 2026.
While the FIA isn’t anticipating many 2026 spec cars for the first season of the regulations, the idea behind introducing the rules for that season is to allow the current teams time to prepare for 2027.
Esapekka Lappi, Janne Ferm, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1
Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool
Speaking at a media roundtable attended by Motorsport.com, Richards explained how the WRC will navigate this period of transition.
“Clearly we are in a transition period now and we can’t throw out the rules,” said Richards.
“People have invested in the cars…
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