FIA confirms remaining dates on 2017 WRC calendar, adds Poland
Luke Smith
The FIA has confirmed the full calendar for the 2017 World Rally Championship season following the latest meeting of the World Motor Sport Council in Vienna this week.
The WMSC had previously approved a 12-round calendar for the 2017 season, but only confirmed the dates for the opening six rounds of the year.
In a statement issued by the FIA on Wednesday, the dates were firmed up for the entire calendar, as well as adding a 13th round in Poland.
FIA World Rally Championship 2017 Calendar
1. Monte Carlo 20-22 January
2. Sweden 10-12 February
3. Mexico 10-12 March
4. France April 7-9
5. Argentina April 28-30
6. Portugal 19-21 May
7. Italy 9-11 June
8. Poland 30 June 2 July
9. Finland 28-30 July
10. Germany 19-20 August
11. Spain 6-8 October
12. Great Britain 27-29 October
13. Australia 17-19 November
In its statement, the FIA also confirmed the following regarding WRC in 2017:
The start order for World Championship rallies from 2017 has been amended and is now based purely on performance:
Day 1: All cars start according to the actual Championship classification
Day 2: P1 drivers start in the reverse order of the actual rally classification after Day 1. Other drivers start in the order of the rally classification.
Day 3: P1 drivers start in the reverse order of the actual rally classification after Day 2. Other drivers start in the order of the rally classification.
P1 drivers re-starting in Rally 2 will start at the end of the P1 group.
The start order of the first rally of the Championship will be based on the Championship classification of the previous year.
A WRC Trophy has been created for drivers and co-drivers participating in pre-2017 specification WRC cars. The maximum number of qualifying rallies is seven and the driver and co-driver who have scored the highest total of points in six of the qualifying rallies will win the titles. If less than five competitors register, no titles will be awarded.
M-Sport has been awarded the contract to supply R2 cars for the FIA Junior WRC Championship for 2017 and 2018.
Michelin Competition and DMACK Tyres are the registered tire companies for the 2017 FIA World Rally Championship.
Following Volkswagens shock withdrawal from the WRC, defending champion Sebastien Ogier is currently without a seat, but is known to be in the running for drives with both Citroen and the Ford M-Sport team in 2017.
