TheWorld Rally-Raid Championship(officially abbreviated asW2RC) is arally raidseries co-sanctioned by theFIAandFIMand promoted by theAmaury Sport Organisation(ASO).[1][2]The championship's seasons culminate with world championship titles in both automobile and motorcycle categories.
 | |
| Category | Rally raid |
|---|---|
| Country | International |
| Inaugural season | 2022 |
| Classes |
|
| Drivers' champion |  Nasser Al-Attiyah(O/A) Seth Quintero(T3) Rokas Baciuška(T4) Janus van Kasteren(T5) |
| Co-Drivers' champion |  Mathieu Baumel(O/A) Dennis Zenz (T3) Oriol Vidal Montijano (T4)Marcel Snijders (T5) |
| Riders' champion |  Luciano Benavides (RallyGP)Romain Dumontier (Rally2) Ardit Kurtaj (Rally3)Laisvydas Kancius (Quad) |
| Makes' champion | Toyota Gazoo Racing(FIA) Monster EnergyHonda(FIM) |
| Official website | worldrallyraidchampionship |
 Current season | |
Beginning in 2022, the series replaced both theFIA World Cup for Cross-Country RalliesandFIM Cross-Country Rallies World Championshipas the top echelon of the sport of rally raid.[3]ASO will serve as series promotor for a period of five years.[1]
History
editThe combined World Championship series was conceived as a result of efforts by theASO,FIAandFIMto harmonize regulations.[4]After a vote by theWorld Motorsport Councilto officially makerally raidthe seventh world championship under the FIA in 2021, they joined with the FIM to combine their respective international cross-country rallying series into a single World Rally-Raid Championship. The ASO, promotor of theDakar Rally,was chosen by both world-governing bodies as the sole promotor of the series for a period of five years.[1]
The inaugural World Championship officially kicked off with the2022 Dakar Rally[3]and ended inMoroccofollowing revisions to the schedule due to theRussian Invasion of Ukraine,forcing the cancellation of that year'sRally Kazakhstan,[5]and environmental concerns that forced theAndalucia Rallyto be rescheduled.[6]The inaugural winners of the FIA World Rally-Raid Championship wereNasser Al-AttiyahandMathieu BaumelwithToyota Gazoo Racingas the winning manufacturer;[7]whileSam Sunderlanddid likewise in the FIM World Rally-Raid Championship withMonster EnergyHonda.[8][9]
Format
editThe championship consists primarily of two forms of cross-country rallying:
- Cross-Country Rally:Between four and six timed stages; total distance of 1200km.
- Cross-Country Marathon:More than six timed stages; total distance of 2500km.
The cross-country baja format continues to be contested in the internationalFIA World Cup for Cross-Country BajasandFIM Bajas World Cupcompetitions, separate from the world championship.
Categories and awards
editThe series covers various categories under both theFIAandFIM.[10][11]
FIA categories
edit- T1: Prototype Cross-Country Cars
- T2: Series Production Cross-Country Cars
- T3: Lightweight Prototype Cross-Country Vehicles
- FIA Rally-Raid Championship for T3 drivers and co-drivers.
- T4: Modified Production Cross-Country Side-by-Side Vehicles
- FIA Rally-Raid Championship for T4 drivers and co-drivers.
- T5: Prototype and Production Cross-Country Trucks
- FIA Rally-Raid Championship for T5 drivers and co-drivers.
Groups T1, T2, T3 and T4 are eligible for the overall FIA Rally-Raid World Championship titles for drivers, co-drivers, and manufacturers. Additional Group-specific championships are awarded in Groups T3, T4 and T5.
FIM categories
edit- RallyGP
- FIM Rally-Raid World Championship for riders and manufacturers
- Rally2
- FIM Rally-Raid World Cup for Rally2 Riders
- FIM Rally-Raid Trophy for Juniors
- FIM Rally-Raid Trophy for Women
- FIM Rally-Raid Trophy for Seniors
- Rally3
- FIM Rally-Raid World Cup for Rally3 Riders
- FIM Rally-Raid Trophy for Juniors
- Quad
- FIM Rally-Raid World Cup for Quad Riders
Only riders competing in the RallyGP category are eligible for the FIM Rally-Raid World Championship. World Cup titles are available for champions of the Rally2, Rally3, and Quad categories.
Champions
editFIA Rally-Raid World Champions
edit| Season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Driver | Co-Driver | Manufacturer | |
| 2022 | Nasser Al-Attiyah |
Mathieu Baumel |
 Toyota Gazoo Racing
|
| Sébastien Loeb
|
 Fabian Lurquin
|
X-Raid Mini JCW Team
| |
 Yazeed Al-Rajhi
|
Dirk von Zitzewitz
|
Bahrain Raid Xtreme
| |
| 2023 | Nasser Al-Attiyah |
Mathieu Baumel |
Toyota Gazoo Racing
|
| Yazeed Al-Rajhi
|
Timo Gottschalk
|
Bahrain Raid Xtreme
| |
| Juan Cruz Yacopini
|
Daniel Oliveras Carreras
|
OT3 by G Rally Team |
FIM Rally-Raid World Champions
edit| Season | ||
|---|---|---|
| Rider | Manufacturer | |
| 2022 |  Sam Sunderland |
Monster EnergyHonda
|
| Ricky Brabec
|
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
| |
| Adrien Van Beveren
|
Red Bull Gas Gas Factory Racing
| |
| 2023 | Luciano Benavides
|
Monster EnergyHonda
|
 Toby Price
|
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
| |
| Adrien Van Beveren
|
 Husqvarna Factory Racing
|
FIA Rally-Raid Champions
edit| Season | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| T3 Driver | T3 Co-Driver | T4 Driver | T4 Co-Driver | T5 Driver | T5 Co-Driver | |
| 2022 |  Francisco López |
François Cazalet |
Rokas Baciuška |
 Lukasz Laskawiec |
Kees Koolen |
Wouter De Graaff
|
| Seth Quintero
|
Dennis Zenz
|
Marek Goczał
|
 Gustavo Gugelmin
|
 Martin Macík
|
František Tomášek
| |
| Cristina Gutiérrez
|
Juan Pablo Latrach
|
Austin Jones
|
Oriol Mena
|
Tomáš Vrátný
|
David Švanda
| |
| 2023 | Seth Quintero |
Dennis Zenz |
Rokas Baciuška |
Oriol Vidal |
Janus van Kasteren |
Marcel Snijders
|
| Mitch Guthrie
|
Kellon Walch
|
Shinsuke Umeda
|
Oriol Mena
|
Tomáš Vrátný
|
- | |
| Austin Jones
|
Gustavo Gugelmin
|
Eryk Goczał
|
 Maurizio Dominella
|
Martin Macík
|
Bartlomiej Boba
|
FIM Rally-Raid World Cup
edit| Season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Rally2 Rider | Rally3 Rider | Quad Rider | |
| 2022 | Mason Klein |
 Amine Echiguer |
Alexandre Giroud
|
| Romain Dumontier
|
Jeremy Miroir
|
 Juraj Varga
| |
 Bradley Cox
|
Guillaume Borne
|
Kamil Wiśniewski
| |
| 2023 | Romain Dumontier |
Ardit Kurtaj |
Laisvydas Kancius
|
| Paolo Lucci
|
Alexander Chepurko
|
 Rodolfo Guillioli Schippers
| |
| Jean-Loup Lepan
|
 Cheikh-Yves Jacquemain
|
Juraj Varga
|
FIM Rally-Raid Trophies
edit| Season | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Women | Junior (R2) | Senior | Junior (R3) | |
| 2022 | Mirjam Pol |
Mason Klein |
 Mario Patrao |
 No Participants
|
| Sandra Gómez
|
Konrad Dąbrowski
|
Franco Picco
|
||
| Sara García
|
Bradley Cox
|
David McBride
|
||
| 2023 | Mirjam Pol |
Jean Loup Lepan |
Dominique Cizeau Girault |
No Participants
|
| - | Bradley Cox
|
- | ||
| - | Konrad Dąbrowski
|
- |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^abc"FIA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP STATUS FOR CROSS-COUNTRY RALLYING, WITH DAKAR RALLY AS ITS CORNERSTONE; A.S.O. APPOINTED GLOBAL PROMOTER".World Rally-Raid Championship.
- ^"A.S.O. ANNOUNCED AS THE FIRST EVER FIM WORLD RALLY-RAID CHAMPIONSHIP PROMOTER".World Rally-Raid Championship.
- ^ab"🇬🇧 The new FIA & FIM World Rally Raid Championships - #Dakar2022".Retrieved2021-12-17– viaYouTube.
- ^"FIA, ASO launch new Cross-Country World Championship around Dakar".Motorsport.
- ^Brunsdon, Stephen (17 March 2022)."Kazakhstan World Rally-Raid event canceled due to war".DirtFish.Retrieved16 November2022.
- ^"W2RC - Revised dates for Rallye du Maroc and Andalucía Rally*".Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.7 June 2022.Retrieved16 November2022.
- ^"W2RC - LOEB WINS IN ANDALUCIA BUT AL-ATTIYAH SECURES INAUGURAL W2RC DRIVERS' TITLE".Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.23 October 2022.Retrieved16 November2022.
- ^"A DREAM SEASON FOR AL-ATTIYAH AND SUNDERLAND".World Rally-Raid Championship.23 October 2022.Retrieved16 November2022.
- ^"W2RC: A DREAM SEASON FOR SUNDERLAND".Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme.24 October 2022.Retrieved16 November2022.
- ^"FIA CROSS COUNTRY RALLIES".fia.Retrieved4 January2022.
- ^"FIM Documents".fim-moto.Retrieved4 January2022.
External links
edit- Official website(in English, French, and Spanish)
- Official website- FIA Rally-Raid
- Official website- FIM Rally-Raid