No Rally Japan Could Send Manufacturers Away from the WRC

A few days ago, North One Sport announced the definitive calendar of the 2011 World Rally Championship. While New Zealand preferred to stay on the sidelines next year due to the Rugby World Cup, although being handed an offer from the WRC promoters, the Rally Japan organizers were not offered a date in 2011.

According to the event's clerk of the course Dimar Krivtsov, North One Sport's overlooking the Asian continent for a WRC round next season might have a deep impact on the way Japanese manufacturers will approach a potential entry in the championship. Meaning that companies such as Subaru, Suzuki or Mitsubishi might not reconsider a WRC return with no home rally in the series.

“Granted, there is no Japanese manufacturer in the sport anymore - that is true, but I would have thought having Japan in the calendar would help to bring them back,” said Krivtsov.

“The only idea of them being in the championship was the opportunity to showcase themselves in Japan – with that missing I really don't know what the manufacturers would think about coming back,” added the official of Rally Japan.

Prior to last year's WRC campaign, Subaru and Suzuki confirmed their exit from the series, but some reports suggested that at least the former would reconsider its position when the new S2000 regulations will debut in 2011. According to North One Sport's Simon Long, Japan is clearly not out of the promoter's plans for the future.

“We have lost Japanese manufacturers Subaru, Suzuki and Mitsubishi from the championship and, in the context of manufacturers, there's, perhaps, not the compelling case for putting Japan in the calendar there once was. But, the door is always very much open here and we will be talking to the organizers in the future,” said Long.