Originally Posted by
AnttiL
It's pre 1979 cup. Before 1973 there weren't even manufacturer's championships.
Rallying was a different sport back then. It was a competition for the best car. Teams didn't have drivers doing full WRC seasons, instead selecting the best events they could win in and the best specialist drivers for the job. Meanwhile, drivers would participate in other series and/or special events like London-Mexico in addition to doing a few WRC rallies, unlike now where it's rare if a WRC driver does an ERC event for example. No one was concentrating on getting the highest overall points because there was no proper title for it. In that sense, it was a secondary trophy. In fact, although the drivers title started in 1979, it remained in the old way for quite long with usually only 3-4 drivers doing enough WRC events to be considered title contenders. It wasn't until the WRC car era that we started having all teams and all drivers taking part in all events for a proper title fight between 10 drivers.