2010 Calendar

[Luis Pacheco]

http://autosport.aeiou.pt/gen.pl?p=s....stories/86286

More IRC events next year. This new is telling that New Zealand, Poland and Turkey could be in the 2011 calendar.

[PLuto]

Not the best translation. True is, that Eurosport is in discussion with many events, New Zealand, Poland and Turkey are included. But nothing is sure, there will be still lot of discussions.

[Mirek]

Mr. Lotti spoke about that on press conference on Sardinia:

Now we have perhaps too many requests to be added to the calendar and we cannot
have a situation where we have 18 or 20 events. There is a limit of events where people can score
points but we have to consider the number of events we have but perhaps with more requests we
can select more and more good events.

We have to be careful to increase the number of events of the IRC series. We can consider, sure,
these events that at the moment don’t have the opportunity to be included in the WRC calendar. But
we have to find the right condition to organise or include an event in our series by considering the
economy and backing from the local organiser. New Zealand is a little bit far away but it could be
one. I have received an email from the New Zealand organiser to consider and include New Zealand
and we have a planning meeting at the end of June. After we will see and consider the possibility to
do it. What we don’t want is to have too many events. Seven events are valid to score points and why
not keep this and let people decide where they run. This is not a big problem in this economic period.
With Poland we spoke several times and New Zealand we start to speak at the end of June.

When Portugal decide to come into the IRC it’s because it was out of the WRC. We don’t force
nobody to stay in the IRC. For sure the Italian federation can decide to go back into the WRC, why
not? But if they want to stay in the IRC we are open. We speak with everybody. What is important for
us is that in IRC we pay for all the transportation for the teams when we go outside of Europe, we pay
for everything. But it is too early to speak about these new events. I don’t think we are ready to
accept a compromise that the events when they are not in the WRC can stay one night sleeping in
our hotel, otherwise the cost of suite will be high although this can be a solution if they want to come
for one night.

[NaBUru38]

The IRC call themselves Intercontinental, but cries "New Zealand is a little bit far away". This year they are having just three rounds far from Europe (Argentina, Brazil and Açores). This standings table looks like a gruyere cheese - there are only six regular drivers who have scored points. Driers score in 7 out of 12 races this year, and they want more races for 2011 but keep scoring in 7. Why not have a truly worldwide WRC and a televised, factory-backed European Rally Championship?