KIMI RAIKKONEN: F1 IS BORING

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* F1 is MUNDANE and predictable.

* He is NOT jealous of title-winning Brits Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button, nor of seven-times champ Michael Schumacher's comeback.

* The sport is too COLD and there is lack of friendship.

Former F1 star Raikkonen crashes in rally debut

ROVANIEMI, Finland (AP) — Former Formula One champion Kimi Raikkonen crashed into a snow drift at the Arctic Lapland Rally.

He trailed by more than 30 minutes after the first day of racing on Friday.

Raikkonen was just 5.5 seconds behind leader Dani Sordo before going off the road. His car was pulled out of the snow, and the former Ferrari driver and co-pilot Kai Lindstrom escaped unhurt.

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Sebastien Loeb confirms GP2 test

Defending World Rally Champion Sebastien Loeb will drive a GP2 racing car run by the DPR team at an official test session in Jerez on 8 October.

Loeb confirmed the test amid continued speculation that he will tackle the last round of the F1 season, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, on 1 November.

Loeb impressed at a test with the Red Bull Formula 1 team last November, and has been linked to a seat with the associated Torro Rosso team in Abu Dhabi.

Recently, Citroen Racing boss Olivier Quesnel said he wouldn't prevent his star driver from driving in a Formula 1 race, provided it happened after Rally GB (23-25 October).

Loeb said the GP2 test had come about after a conversation with one of his engineers at a Porsche Carrera Cup race in France. "Because he knows that I love to get more experience at the steering wheel he informed me that a place was available in the DPR team. I'm testing with the C4 on 6th and 7th in Great Britain but I'll be at the GP2 test on the 8th," he said.

The five-time World Champion also revealed that he had modified his physical training routine in order to be ready for any racing opportunities - regularly wearing a weighted crash helmet to build the muscles in his neck.

2010 WRC Schedule

2010 World Rally Championship events agreed

Next year's World Rally Championship events have been agreed following a decision of the WRC commission today to approve the application of the candidate rally in Bulgaria.

Bulgaria was the sole FIA candidate rally for 2010, meaning that although it was included in next year's provisional calendar, its place depended on a satisfactory report from an FIA observer attending this year's Borovets-based event.

However doubts had been expressed about Bulgaria's bid to join the WRC after July's candidate rally ended prematurely, following a crash which killed Italian co-driver Flavio Guglielmin.

But after reviewing the FIA observers report at a meeting today in Paris, the World Rally Championship commission, headed by its president Morrie Chandler, decided that Rally Bulgaria had met the required standard, and would keep its place in next year's 13-round calendar.

Today's decision ends Rally Argentina's bid to be a part of the 2010 series. The South American event had put itself forward as a reserve in case Bulgaria's application was unsuccessful.

Although the events are now certain, the date of Rally Bulgaria remains to be finalised. Currently it is scheduled to finish on 11 July, but a move one week earlier or later seems likely to prevent a clash with the FIFA World Cup Final which takes place on the same day.

Next year's WRC calendar (with Sunday finish dates)

1. Sweden: 14/02/10
2. Mexico: 07/03/10
3. Jordan: 04/04/10
4. Turkey: 18/04/10
5. New Zealand: 09/05/10
6. Portugal: 30/05/10
7. Bulgaria*: 11/07/10
8. Finland: 01/08/10
9. Germany: 22/08/10
10. Japan: 12/09/10
11. France: 03/10/10
12. Spain: 24/10/10
13. GB: 14/11/10

Hirvonen wins Australia after Citroen penalty

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One of the most competitive World Rally Championship events of the year came to a dramatic end today when the Citroen teams were found to be using a front anti-roll bar that did not match homologation. In light of the ruling Sebastien Loeb, Dani Sordo and Citroen Junior Sebastien Ogier driver were all docked a one minute penalty, shaking up the final order of Rally Australia. Instead of Loeb winning and only being a point behind Mikko Hirvonen he will have to settle for second place. Sordo stays in third while Ogier loses fourth to Jari-Matti Latvala.

Loeb cleared by WRC team to race F1

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Five times WRC champion Sebastien Loeb has been given permission by his Citroen team to make his Formula One debut in Abu Dhabi if he is offered a drive.

Loeb has long expressed a wish to try his hand at an F1 race, having impressed during testing for both Red Bull and Renault in recent years.

With Red Bull being a major sponsor of Citroen's WRC team, a link-up with Red Bull's 'junior' outfit Scuderia Toro Rosso seems the most likely option.

Citroen team principal Olivier Quesnel has now come out and said that Loeb can race in F1 provided the opportunity arises itself outside of the WRC season.

Aussies throws rocks and close stages of Rally Australia

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Five-time World Rally champion Sebastien Loeb has defended Rally Australia in the face of increasingly hostile environmental protests against the event.

"The people are not so happy to see us," Loeb said. "They don't have to be angry at the drivers. We are just doing our jobs. Sometimes, people don't like us in front of their houses, but I didn't ask to come here. I can understand why some people don't like the rally, but I have to do my job."

Stages six and 11 were canceled today after rocks were thrown at the course-opening car and the stage was blocked when protesters against the event pulled a fence across the road. Championship leader Mikko Hirvonen was first on the scene in SS6, but the Finn drove straight through the fence. The stage was stopped by marshals at the next radio communication point. Stage 11, a repeat of that test, was canceled to allow the police investigation to get underway.
Hirvonen also spoke of being blocked on the road sections

F1’s Sebastian Vettel Has Sights Set on WRC

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Red Bull Racing Formula 1 driver Sebastian Vettel has expressed a desire to follow Kimi Raikkonen’s lead and tackle a round of the World Rally Championship.

Vettel travelled to Finland this weekend and met up with Citroen Total World Rally Team drivers Sebastien Loeb and Dani Sordo, before heading out to the stages to witness the action of the fastest round of the WRC.

“This is my first time at the World Rally Championship and it’s been fascinating,” said the German.

F1's Raikkonen drives in Rally Finland

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JYVASKYLA, Finland (AP) — Formula One star Kimi Raikkonen was 20th in his world rally championship debut at Rally Finland on Thursday.

Competing while F1 takes a monthlong break, Raikkonen, the 2007 world champion, was driving as a guest in his own N-group Fiat.

WRC coming to USA TV

http://wrc.com/jsp/index.jsp?lnk=101&id=5515&desc=High-definition%20WRC%20coverage%20coming%20to%20America

15/7/09
High-definition WRC coverage coming to America

Television coverage of the FIA World Rally Championship will be available to millions of households in the USA later this year thanks to a new partnership between series promoters, ISC, and the Discovery Channel's HD Theater network.

WRC programming will be shown weekly on HD Theater starting in October. As well as coverage from every round of the championship, a range of other features and news bulletins will be shown.

Part of the Discovery Channel's range of networks, HD Theater is one of the most widely distributed high-definition services available in the United States. Specialising in adventure, technology, nature and world culture programming, HD Theater also covers a number of racing events, all of which are shown in a 1080i picture format and with 5.1 digital surround sound.

“This is tremendous news for the championship and our fans in the United States," said Simon Long, ISC CEO. "It is a ground breaking deal which means the WRC has a high-profile broadcast presence in the United States via a hugely-respected, quality and innovative partner in Discovery Communication’s HD Theater,”

“We’re looking forward to the opportunity to take the WRC to an ever wider audience in the significant U.S. market, and working with HD Theater to bring more attention to what we firmly believe is an ‘epic motorsport adventure by the world’s greatest drivers,’” he added.

Clark Bunting, president and general manager of HD Theater, said: "HD Theater has been a pioneer in high-definition programming and we are excited to introduce the FIA World Rally Championships to our American audience. This year we’ve seen the action go from the snow-covered roads of Norway to the hairpin turns climbing the Cordobese Sierras of Argentina, and the adrenaline-fuelled rally action will shine in high-definition."

Raikkonen to race in world rally

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Former Formula 1 champion Kimi Raikkonen is to compete in the World Rally Championship in his native Finland at the end of the July.

Ferrari's Raikkonen has appeared in three non-championship rallies this season and will be behind the wheel of a Fiat Abarth Grande Punto.

His co-driver, Kaj Lindstrom, said: "The roads used for this rally are so fast but he's very talented."

The rally is staged three weeks before the European Grand Prix in Valencia.

Prodrive chief 'may turn to F1

Subaru's withdrawal from the World Rally Championship could hasten team principal David Richards' return to F1.

Richards, chairman of Banbury-based firm Prodrive which prepares the Subaru cars, says he now has time to consider future projects.

"I can focus now on where we want to be long term. Who knows? That might be in Formula One," he told BBC Oxford.

Richards was axed by Honda when it took over BAR in 2004, and has not ruled out a takeover of the troubled F1 team.

Richards, a former Benetton boss, is thought to be one of the parties interested in taking over the Honda team - after the Japanese company pulled out of F1 because of financial reasons.

"I don't know about Honda," he said. "There's a new era beckoning in Formula One, with a lower cost base. No less competitive or exciting, but certainly (there is) an opportunity there."

When asked whether potential buyers might prefer to wait until cost cutting rules are fully implemented by F1, Richards replied: "That is going to be one of the challenges for Honda I suspect."

Prodrive runs the Subaru World Rally team and Aston Martin's Le Mans programmes as well as the Ford Performance Racing team in Australia.

source: bbc

Subaru pulls out of 2009 World Rally Championship

Subaru and rally competition have been synonymous for nearly 20 years, but in a surprising move, the company said on Tuesday that it is pulling out of the 2009 World Rally Championship in response to the global economic crisis.

The Prodrive-run Subaru team has won six WRC titles--three manufacturer's and three driver's--and built up a strong following around the world. In turn, rally success has helped Subaru sell sporty cars and burnish its image with enthusiasts, in the process making the blue Impreza rally car an icon.

The announcement came from Subaru's parent company, Fuji Heavy Industries, which said it had met its objectives for WRC competition.

Prodrive said it will prepare to re-enter competition in 2010 with a new team, as new technical regulations are introduced.

"Subaru's departure from the World Rally Championship is a great loss as it is one of the sport's icons," Prodrive chairman Dave Richards said in a statement.

"The Subaru World Rally Team has created true champions, such as Colin McRae and Richard Burns, and its absence will be felt by many the world over. Although this decision closes a significant chapter in Prodrive's history, our focus now turns to the future."

On Monday, Suzuki said it would withdraw from the WRC. The departures leave the series without a Japanese automaker.

The news sends another chill through the racing world following word that Honda is pulling out of Formula One competition and Audi is leaving the American Le Mans Series.

Source autoweek

MotoGP Star Valentino Rossi Rewarded For Perfect Partnership With Stobart WRC Team

Wales Rally GB has seen a relationship blossom this weekend between MotoGP superstar Valentino Rossi and the Stobart VK M-Sport Ford rally team. When the two-wheeled champion made the decision to contest the final round of the 2008 FIA World Rally Championship the Stobart squad were more than happy to accommodate and help his cause to raise funds for the Children in Need charity.






Stobart Group CEO Andrew Tinkler and COO William Stobart were delighted with the presence of the six-time MotoGP champion and the atmosphere he generated around the team’s service area and indeed the entire event.

"The Stobart team has done a great job here on our home event. I am really pleased that Valentino came to drive one of our cars and we have both worked extremely well together; he is a fantastic draw for fans and spectators and we have had a massive interest in the team. Some of his splits and stage times have been really impressive.

"Valentino’s run here has really raised the global and national media exposure for both the team and Stobart Group. To have the support of a motorsport legend for our home event is a real boost and is something really special to end off a great year in business for Stobart Group and a great year in motorsport for our rally team." said Tinkler.

Rossi also generated a phenomenal amount of publicity and media coverage and ramped up the global exposure the team already achieve through the World Rally Championship.

Fans too greatly enjoyed the presence of the champ who was more than happy to meet his supporters in Great Britain. The Italian thoroughly enjoyed his time with the entire Ford family and his time behind the wheel of the Stobart Ford Focus RS WRC.

"We have had a great time here with the Stobart team and everyone has worked fantastically well together," commented Rossi. "I have really enjoyed this rally, especially when we got some fast times today and hopefully we will get a chance to work again together with Stobart."

Rossi was also awarded the Abu Dhabi Spirit of the Rally award today. The fact he entered one of the calendar’s toughest WRC rounds and put his reputation on the line speaks volumes for the man and the entire WRC family. To come out with such a highly commendable finish shows his unique natural ability. The Abu Dhabi Spirit of the Rally award recognises parties demonstrating the same values that the UAE capital stands for: respect, innovation, integrity and teamwork. It also acknowledges a positive contribution to the WRC by any of the myriad of parties involved in the sport.

"I’m very proud to receive the Abu Dhabi Spirit of the Rally award. I think it is a great idea for Abu Dhabi to provide this and it helps to show the effort that people put into motorsport." He added.

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Loeb fast enough for F1, say Red Bull

Multiple World Rally Champion Sebastien Loeb has been hailed fast enough for Formula One by the Red Bull Racing team after the Frenchman tested one of their cars at Barcelona on Monday.

Loeb, 34, set the eighth fastest time of the day as F1 began preparing for the sweeping rule changes set to come in to force in the sport next season, and completed 82 trouble-free laps at the Spanish circuit.

"I expected to be pleasantly surprised and that was the case," Red Bull's race performance engineer Daniele Casanova told Autosport. "Sebastien has been really impressive. He has stepped into the car and not put a foot wrong from the beginning."

Loeb drove an interim RB4 chassis, with new slick Bridgestone tyres and simulated '09 levels of downforce. And while he was eighth quickest of 17 runners, the field was spread unusually wide due to the different configuration packages all the teams ran this week.

Nevertheless Casanova believes that Loeb's performance was of 'midfield' F1 pace.

"It's hard to the tell the exact pace," said Casanova. "From the fastest car to the slowest there is a 25km/h difference, so clearly a lot of people are running many different configurations, including KERS, wings and tyres.

"We are the correct weight, so at a guess I would say Sebastien is running somewhere in the midfield, which is mighty impressive.

"It's obviously fun to run a driver like Sebastien, but we also got a lot of useful work done. The new tyres are things that we have only tested two or three times before and they are really quite different. The idea is that this would be a normal test for us. So he was going at a good test pace, without taking any risks."

Despite proving that he has the speed, Loeb dismissed a switch to Formula One at this late stage in his career.

"Maybe I am too old," he told Autosport. "If I was going to do that, it's something that I should have thought about doing a few years ago. This only came about because it was an opportunity offered to me by Red Bull.

"You can't compare F1 to rallying, they are so different. It's not true that rallying is more of a comfort zone, because when I am flat-out on the stages I am concentrating just as hard as I was today."

The test was Loeb's second experience of F1, having tested a Renault R27 alongside Heikki Kovalainen at Paul Ricard last year - where he lapped 1.5s off the Finn's pace.

The Citroen WRC star added that he would love to drive an F1 car again and felt that there was more to come from him in terms of performance.

"I think there was more speed to come from me, but I am not going to say that I could have gone a second quicker or anything, because I wasn't," he said. "There were definitely areas where I could have improved though, particularly under braking.

"Sometimes I was braking too early and sometimes too late. I think it's the most difficult thing for anyone coming into F1 for the first time. For the rest [of the driving skills], it was not too bad. I studied some videos before, which helped with things like the racing line."

Loeb trades rally driving for F1 testing

BARCELONA, Spain: Five-time world rally champion Sebastien Loeb made an impressive jump to Formula One driving on Monday after taking part in the first winter testing session since the close of a dramatic season.

Loeb, who clinched a record fifth straight rally driving title earlier this month, finished with the eighth fastest time for Red Bull.

The Frenchman had a fastest time of 1 minute, 22.503 seconds to finish just under two seconds behind pace setter Takuma Sato, who was testing sister team for Toro Rosso.

"I enjoyed it very much. It is never a holiday when you are driving a Formula One car," Loeb said from the Circuit de Catalunya. "When you are a driver you dream about driving Formula One and if you get this opportunity, you take it... I would not say no if I had another opportunity."

Loeb said it took time to acclimatize to the G-force felt in turns, the difference in suspensions and the tires as 17 F1 cars tested slicks in line with regulation changes for 2009.
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Loeb, rallying's most successful ever driver, said that at 34 a switch to F1 was "maybe too late."

But he sounded like your typical race car driver afterward, however.

"I can go faster," he said, although he won't continue testing through Wednesday. "I know a few places where I lost some time and I know I can do better.

"At the end I was really feeling good in the car, there were no big risks, I didn't make any mistakes, there were no big moments, I just need to improve."

Loeb still has a race in Wales next month to close out the rally season. But the motivation remained the same regardless of the type of car he was steering.

"I like the fight and I like what I am doing, so when I start the stage I just want to be the fastest, so that's it, that's my motivation," the Citroen driver said. "I don't drive only for the title and for the victories, it's a question of pleasure."

It was the first return to the track since the season-ending Brazilian GP earlier this month, when 23-year-old Lewis Hamilton became the youngest ever champion after an overtaking maneuver at the last corner. The McLaren driver finished one point better ahead of Ferrari's Felipe Massa, who won his home race.

Neither driver was at the track on the outskirts of Barcelona, with Renault's Nelson Piquet Jr., BMW Sauber's Robert Kubica and Force India's Adrian Sutil the only F1 drivers present.

Loeb was faster than Piquet Jr., but teams were trying out different configurations making it harder to judge the true speed of the drivers and cars.

He also finished ahead of Ferrari test driver Marc Gene and nearly two seconds ahead of Bruno Senna, the nephew of former three-time F1 champion Ayrton Senna, who was testing for Honda.

It was the first time a Senna was behind the wheel of a Formula One car since Ayrton died in a crash at Imola over 14 years ago.

"Considering it was the first time I drove the car, I think it was pretty decent," said Senna, who timed a fastest lap of 1:24.343 from 39 laps.

"The car was such a big step up from GP 2. Everything is just a notch up. You cannot expect a driver who is new to Formula One to come in and produce a lap time that's magical, so the team wanted me to get comfortable with the car."

Senna finished second to GP2 champion Giorgio Pantano this past season. The iSport driver is expected by many to make the jump to F1 by 2009 or 2010.

"I'm testing for Honda so it's going to be my first choice (of team)," said Senna, who will continue testing with the team through this week. "I am satisfied, for a first experience it has been really good."

WRC Champ Loeb to test Formula 1 car.

SEBASTIEN LOEB TO TEST A RED BULL F1 CAR

Fresh from getting out of his Citroen C4 WRC at the end of Rally Japan, newly-crowned five-time World Rally Champion Sebastien Loeb was handed a fantastic prize for his title by Red Bull, Citroen Sport's partner.

Red Bull Racing will give the Frenchman a chance to test one of its RB4s at the official Formula 1 test session on 17 November in Barcelona.

Beforehand, Sebastien will go to the team's headquarters in Milton Keynes to meet Red Bull Racing and prepare for the 17th. He will make his first acquaintance with the car during a preliminary test at the Silverstone circuit.

Sebastien Loeb is already eagerly anticipating this amazing experience: "I'm absolutely delighted by this present from Red Bull to celebrate my fifth World Rally Championship title. I already got the chance to test a Formula 1 car last year, but this time the circumstances will be a little different. I'm now going to find myself in the midst of all the regular F1 drivers during an official test. I just hope that I don't make a fool of myself! On the other hand, it's only for one day. I'd like to clear up any speculation about me possibly switching to F1...next year I'm definitely going to be driving a Citroen C4 WRC on the World Rally Championship !"

-credit: citroen

Rally star Sebastien Loeb claims fifth WRC crown in a row

SEBASTIEN LOEB yesterday won the World Rally Championship drivers' crown for the fifth year in a row.

The Frenchman clinched the title in his Citreon when he finished third in the Rally of Japan in Sapporo.

Finn Mikko Hirvonen won the raced by 31.1 seconds but it was not enough to close the gap on Loeb who said: "It's incredible.

"It's a great moment. It's perfect. I'm so relieved this weekend is over now. Last year my co-driver Daniel Elena and I equalled the record with four wins so being the only ones to do five we are very happy."

Hirvonen secured his third win of the year in three hours 25 minutes and three seconds but conceded that Loeb was a worthy title winner.

He said: "Sebastien won 10 events before coming here so he deserves it. I did all I could. Now we need to try again next year."

WRC heads to Russian

For the first time in Russian history our country gets a golden opportunity to host an event of the World Rally Championship (WRC). And as in any other kinds of sports, such a global and high-ranking event demands very serious preparations.



For organizing a rally in accordance to all requirements of the Federation International de l’Automobile (FIA), national officials are given two years. During this time a future round of the World Championship is held under candidate status, and preparations to it, as well as its organization and carrying out, are carefully observed by the FIA representatives. Following the results of each rally an observer conducts a report, based on which organizers of the event imply necessary changes for the next season.



Annually the FIA considers applications from different countries for holding an event of the World Championship, but only few of them get a chance of holding at least a candidate event. All rallies are run over the routes of national championships’ rounds, and for the most important event it is the best national rally that is generally chosen – the most interesting, the most difficult and the most fascinating.



However, a good route is not enough for hosting a round of the World Championship.



The first and also the most important question, attracting the most attention, is providing safety during a rally. Any motorsport competition document contains the following warning in capitalization: MOTORSPORT CAN BE DANGEROUS! And, of course, any organizer pays maximum attention to safety issues. However, the World Championship requires a completely different level of approaching such matters. For example, in the WRC a special system is used, which allows to track every car on stage in any moment of time – and this allows to provide an emergency if needed and warn other competitors of a dangerous situation ahead.



Secondly, the World Championship rounds have a very big mileage – up to 400 kilometers of special stages (while national competitions are used to run within 150-200 kilometers of competitive distance). This means that the world level competition-hosting region must provide an opportunity to prepare new special stages.



Together with sportsmen a huge amount of “support crews” arrives – managers, mechanics, engineers and media representatives. World-level teams have their own medics, cooks and even weather forecasters in their staff. In addition, regular fans and a lot of journalists come from all over the world. Hence, the WRC-hosting region must have a modern infrastructure, a good traffic network, and a developed tourist business.



And, finally, organization of a WRC round is a process, in which a huge amount of people is involved, and which requires lots of financial investments. For example, about 3-4 million euros is spent on preparation of Neste Oil Rally Finland. It should be mentioned, though, that an average income of holding a three-day rally (including tourism and souvenirs) estimates 20 million euros.



It wasn’t by accident that organizers of the Russian round of the WRC chose the region of Novorossiysk.



A resort zone with a lot of hotels and holiday houses is combined with experience and capabilities to welcome many tourists at once. Three airports, motorways, a seaport make it all possible. Subtropical climate and the “velvet” season – it’s all about it. And of course – the route. The unique, not having any analogues, tracks, offer both rough and fast gravel stages in vineyards and narrow, twisty and dangerous mountain roads.



Novorossiysk Rally holds a well-deserved reputation of the most unpredictable rally in the country. For the last few years the showdown of the Russian Championship has been held in Novorossiysk, and it was there where the destiny of gold medals used to be decided. The one to conquer those roads used to take the title of the fastest driver in the country, and it’s not accidentally – “Novorossiysk” doesn’t forgive mistakes neither in driving nor in strategy.


“Novorossiysk Rally of Russia 2008” promises to become a unique rally. This event has already broken fresh ground in the annals of the world’s motorsport – among the countries, proven worthy of hosting WRC rounds, did appear the name of Russia. Now it’s up to us, if we can create a competition of a completely different level for our country. Because, judging by its difficulty, prestige and scale, the WRC – is an activity at the level of the Olympic games, but in contrast to it, a round of the World Championship takes place in a country not once, but annually. We have two years to prove that Russia deserves such an honor.

Airwaves® becomes World Rally Championship sponsor

Airwaves® announced on Monday that it has become the Official Chewing Gum Sponsor of the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC).

The FIA WRC is a top three global motorsport comprising 15 rallies in 15 countries, attended by eight million fans and a worldwide TV audience of 815 million.

Airwaves® is already a personal sponsor of British driver Matthew Wilson, who lines up alongside other international sports personalities in the 2008 ‘Airwaves® Pro’ campaign, which inspires and empowers people to ‘KICK UP A GEAR®’, and encourages consumers to ‘live their dream’.

Airwaves® will leverage its relationship with the Championship through a variety of unique, WRC rallying experiences which will provide the brand with an opportunity to integrate itself within the sport.

Toby Baker, Wrigley Marketing Director, said: “Airwaves® is delighted to become an Official Sponsor of the FIA World Rally Championship. We’ve already been involved this season via our relationship with Matthew and our new sponsorship agreement will provide more opportunities to convey our ‘KICK UP A GEAR®’ brand vision with the millions of fans who follow the FIA World Rally Championship worldwide.

“The sport is a superb fit for Airwaves®, as it epitomises adrenaline-fuelled and high octane motorsport, which is of a high interest to our consumers.

“As always we will integrate the sponsorship fully into our business, whether that be via internal communications, PR, media partnerships or sales opportunities, all with the aim of enabling people to ‘live their dream’.”

Simon Long, CEO of International Sportsworld Communicators, the exclusive media and commercial rights holder of the FIA World Rally Championship, added: “We are very excited to welcome Wrigley’s Airwaves® to the World Rally Championship and to its family of sponsors and partners. Airwaves® is a brand which fits perfectly within the sport of Rallying and the partnership will help WRC continue to communicate with its fan base through the variety of exciting co-promotions with the Airwaves® brand.”

The deal was negotiated by Generate Sponsorship, who will manage all sponsorship and PR activity for the partnership.