Channel 5 has reached an agreement to broadcast highlights of every round of the FIA World Rally Championship, starting this month.
The series begins with the iconic Rallye Monte-Carlo, which will feature in Channel 5’s debut programme on Monday January 23rd at 7pm, and ends in November with Rally Australia in Coffs Harbour on the New South Wales coast.
This octane-fuelled spectacle showcases authentic high-performance cars and the worldʼs best drivers competing in dramatic surroundings. These include some of the toughest and most varied conditions on the planet, ranging from the ice and snow of Scandinavia to the stifling heat of Mexico.
Established in its current format in 1973, the WRC is widely regarded as the most challenging motorsport championship in the world. Participants battle for the driversʼ and manufacturersʼ world titles at 14 rallies, spanning 15 countries and five continents.
The season includes classic events such as Rallye Monte-Carlo and Rally Australia, while new to the WRC calendar in 2016 is the exciting introduction of Rally China, which will take place in September just outside of Beijing.
British viewers will probably be most familiar with the exploits of Colin McRae and Richard Burns, who won the World Championship in 1995 and 2001 respectively. The new breed of British drivers includes Kris Meeke from Northern Ireland, whose successes last season included a win in Argentina.
This year, Meeke will compete for the Abu Dhabi Total World Rally Team. Welshman Elfyn Evans, who secured podium finishes last season in Argentina and Corsica, will compete for the Cumbria-based M-Sport World Rally Team, driving the new evolution Ford Fiesta R5. The man they will be hoping to catch in 2016 is three-time World Champion Sébastien Ogier, driving for the hugely successful Volkswagen Motorsport team.
Director of programmes at Channel 5, Ben Frow said: “We are excited to have such a fantastic sports brand to build on our growing portfolio of sports content. The World Rally Championship attracts a hugely loyal audience and we look forward to showing action from rallies around the world.”
WRC Promoter managing director Oliver Ciesla said: “We’re delighted to welcome Channel 5 to the WRC as our new broadcast partner. Our agreement will guarantee the most comprehensive free-to-air coverage of the WRC in Britain for many years. A pre-event magazine programme and an hour-long post-event show from all 14 rounds will be supplemented by daily highlights and live coverage of the all-important Power Stage at Britain’s penultimate round. It means fans will enjoy the best excitement and drama that WRC offers.”
World Rally Championships starts on Channel 5 on Monday January 23rd at 7pm. In addition, the World Rally Magazine will precede each round, broadcast on Spike on Saturdays at 1pm