The front man of the World Series’ background company flags on behalf of the rally2 cars. According to Jari-Matti Latvala, the stables meet weekly so that the new rules can be locked in place.
– The Finnish World Cup rally is one of the most popular rallies. Above all, it is completely unique from the profile of the roads. Finnish fans are at least as passionate as in Southern Europe.
The front man of the World Rally Championship promotion company Peter Thulin the words show that he loves the Finnish World Rally Championship.
– I was here for the first time in 1988, when Markku Alén won with a Lancia Delta. I was watching the rally in Ouninpohja at the jumping-off point of the yellow house. The experience was absolutely fantastic, Thul recalls to Urheilu.
Thuli’s speech is important for the future of the Finnish World Rally Championship and the entire World Series. He is the sports director of the company that manages the rights to the World Rally Championship and European Rally Championship.
The company started running the EC series the following year. The profile of the series has risen year by year. In Finland, the competition of the EC series has not been organized for years. The Rovaniemi Mountain Rally was part of the series’ standard program for a long time, but the race has not had an EC value for more than 20 years.
Thul hopes that the EC series competition will soon be held in Finland. For example, in Sweden this year both the World Championship and the European Rally will be held. In Sweden, the WC rally is run in winter and the EC rally in summer.
There will be no winter rally at all in the EC series this year.
– Hopefully we will see an EC rally in Finland one day, says Thul.
The new rules of the World Cup are wanted to be locked in soon
At the moment, however, the rallying world is talking specifically about the reforms of the World Championship.
What do the new World Cup guidelines really mean and why are they so significant? ‘s rally expert Henri Haapamäki opens up revolutions about iron wire in this story.
The promotion company, together with the International Automobile Federation FIA and the current teams of the World Championship, is creating the guidelines for the future of the rally.
The rules are supposed to be locked in the summer. Already next season, the performance of the main class of the World Series, i.e. rally1, will be calculated so that the lower class rally2 cars are closer to them.
Thul praises the rally2 cars, which are already top class cars in the EC series.
– The competition in the EC series is really extensive. We are all in the same boat. We want to keep the current car manufacturers in the series, but also bring in new car brands and make the main class of the World Series better for private drivers as well, Thul emphasizes.
According to Thuli, the confirmation of the technical rules is now in the hands of the teams and the FIA. Toyota team manager Jari-Matti Latvala says that the stables have started weekly meetings so that the rules could be confirmed already next summer.
This applies to rule changes for the upcoming season as well as reforms that will be made to the series from the 2027 season onward.
– The sooner the new rules are ready, the more likely new car manufacturers can commit to the series. Consensus requires compromises, but now we have a direction. By fine-tuning this, you get a good whole, Latvala describes.
Peter Thul is confident that the World Series will not be left in the middle of a frenzy like in recent years, but that the decisions will be finalized soon.
– The reforms presented now are ambitious and the 2025 season will come quickly. On the other hand, rallying is a fast sport, so why can’t we also make decisions quickly?
The drivers have been listened to – new doors are opening for Finnish promises
Esapekka Lapin karter Janne Fermin according to the World Rally Championship competitors have also been listened to when planning the new rule guidelines.
– The situation is wonderful in every way. Now there is a desire to do something. When you look at how many drivers there have been in the WRC2 class, it would be good if it could be capitalized in the main class, says Ferm.
It is planned to increase the performance of the Rally2 cars already for the coming season. From the 2027 season onwards, there will be a price ceiling of 400,000 euros and stricter technical regulations familiar from rally2 cars.
In this way, in the future it would be possible to see private drivers in the main class as well. This opens doors for Finnish promises that are just rising towards the top level.
One of them is a WRC2 series kart this season Janni Hussin circulating with Lauri Joona.
– In the past, you could drive against factory garages with cars from private garages. There can be 30 Rally2 cars on the line, while there are less than ten in the main class. Yes, it’s a good thing if the gap between the cars narrows, Joona reflects.