2021 ERC News and Rumors

[pantealex]

But on the other hand, if FIA decides to make a new car class, you also have to have some title to boost sale, same as with R5, to kickstart sales.
Many did not want to swap S2000 for R5, but now 1000 are sold, and class is a big success. Much because of a good joker system.

If run as planned, I think Rally3 will find its place in the pyramid.

If we would test a DS3 R5 vs a Fiesta Rally3 how far back will the newcomer be?
I am guessing the roadholding with newer suspension will help the Fiesta, especially on gravel.

R5 didn´t have own Championship title in 1st year...

I also think 2022 would have been right time start own Championship for Rally3.
We just don´t have enough entries for 2021, just look ERC2 results, was it good championship with big entries? NO. Exatly same will happen with ERCJ 2021, no rally with 10 entries.

[Mirek]

why they should go for the junior championship then? if they mastered rc2 they can go for main title.

But that is exactly what they have been doing in ERC. I don't know if you have followed it but the young Rally2 drivers have been competing for both titles. It was a win-win scenario which is now gone.

Rally3 is cheaper?

It's not cheaper if you already have Rally2 car and need a new one.

[pantealex]

why they should go for the junior championship then? if they mastered rc2 they can go for main title.

ERCJ has prize money, main title is just title. (Ingram did win title, did 0 rallies with 4WD this year)

[Mirek]

The main problem in incorporating the Rally3 cars is that they are slower than Rally2 but are intended for the same championship. Everytime a championships goes from faster to slower vehicles it's very problematic hence why it happens very rarely. When S2000 came they were faster than Gr.N (at least on asphalt at the beginning). When R5 came they were faster than S2000 (ar at least similar at the beginning). When Rally4 came they were faster than R2. In all cases switching to them was no big issue. The new cars were simply better and teams switched to them naturally. Now it's different. The change of cars in the very same championship to slower ones mean that all the faster cars which the involved teams already have are useless. In essence it's not much different to fifteen years ago when many national championships banned WRC cars which was a step which is very controversial till this very day.

[wyler]

But that is exactly what they have been doing in ERC. I don't know if you have followed it but the young Rally2 drivers have been competing for both titles. It was a win-win scenario which is now gone.

I know. and that's exactly why you don't need a double. better leave junior to juniors, driver coming up with little experience to 4wd and finding cheaper car than rally 2. if they master rally 2 and can pay for it, they're not really junior (maybe just for their age, but...). if junior can compete for main title there's no point to award them another title (and prize). same way if they cannot compete for main title there's no point to award them a price. i think it's better use a junior championship to develop rising driver. if they can get already a rally2 program they don't need it...

It's not cheaper if you already have Rally2 car and need a new one.

they don't need a new car as much they don't need a junior championship, they can just naturally go on with the main title id they have a rally2 program.

[wyler]

ERCJ has prize money, main title is just title. (Ingram did win title, did 0 rallies with 4WD this year)

yep. i would prefer more to give a price to a rising junior coming from rally3 to step to rally 2 than using a rally2 price to fund another junior rally2...

[wyler]

The main problem in incorporating the Rally3 cars is that they are slower than Rally2 but are intended for the same championship. Everytime a championships goes from faster to slower vehicles it's very problematic hence why it happens very rarely. When S2000 came they were faster than Gr.N (at least on asphalt at the beginning). When R5 came they were faster than S2000 (ar at least similar at the beginning). When Rally4 came they were faster than R2. In all cases switching to them was no big issue. The new cars were simply better and teams switched to them naturally. Now it's different. The change of cars in the very same championship to slower ones mean that all the faster cars which the involved teams already have are useless. In essence it's not much different to fifteen years ago when many national championships banned WRC cars which was a step which is very controversial till this very day.

guess rally3 will go as erc2, not with rally2...

[Mirek]

I know. and that's exactly why you don't need a double. better leave junior to juniors, driver coming up with little experience to 4wd and finding cheaper car than rally 2. if they master rally 2 and can pay for it, they're not really junior (maybe just for their age, but...). if junior can compete for main title there's no point to award them another title (and prize). same way if they cannot compete for main title there's no point to award them a price. i think it's better use a junior championship to develop rising driver. if they can get already a rally2 program they don't need it...

they don't need a new car as much they don't need a junior championship, they can just naturally go on with the main title id they have a rally2 program.

You completely ignore the reality that there are young developing drivers with Rally2 cars heavily and happily involved in ERC. What you suggest is to throw them all under the bus for the sake of attracting some new drivers with some new cars. In other words you tell them to fuck off. That's not a way how to manage a championship if you ask me.

guess rally3 will go as erc2, not with rally2...

Regardless of that the reality is that Rally3 is forced to former ERC-1J drivers since 2021.

[wyler]

You completely ignore the reality that there are young developing drivers with Rally2 cars heavily and happily involved in ERC. What you suggest is to throw them all under the bus for the sake of attracting some new drivers with some new cars. In other words you tell them to fuck off. That's not a way how to manage a championship if you ask me.

not at all. it's quite the opposite. i just think a driver that can afford a rally2 championship has finished the developing ladder and can do the main championship. for me, throwing drivers under the bus is considering drivers in rally2 as a junior...sometimes they're already factory drivers, can't really be juniors. if they aren't, they stays there for the easy money (don't need to beat the big) and then...nothing. just like ingram. pretty much under the bus after winning rally2 junior title. maybe spending half the money for a junior championship could ensure some program later on.
the sake of the jumior championship should be having couple more rally2 a year? not for me.

a good way to manage a championship should be helping drivers to develop a stable career. didn't worked out with 2019 champ. would have worked with 2020 one if his name wasn't solberg? ( I mean he surely deserved it, but he didn't need a junior regional program to boost his career)

[QUOTE=Mirek;1259811

Regardless of that the reality is that Rally3 is forced to former ERC-1J drivers since 2021.[/QUOTE]

key word is former. you assume a former junior has to do junior again. i think a rally2 driver will do rally2 program, regardless of the new junior title. if not he will happily step down because he need it, technically or economically.

[Mirek]

The problem is that it never works like you would like it to work. Majority of the competitors stay in the championship till their age allows. That's how it always has been. This is a list of all ERC1-J 2020 competitors.

Munster, Solberg, Llarena, Cais, Marczyk, Dinkel, Devine, Lindholm, Tempestini, Batistolli, Kreim

Tell me which one will stay and switch to Rally3 car? IMHO probably noone. So what will be left of a very competitive championship? A ruin which has to start from zero. Is that worth of making Malcolm Wilson happy?

Anyway time will tell.