Prior Convictions: WRC OMG
Has global rallying really lost its way versus rallycross? Prior doesn't think so.
It didn't really pan out like that. As it sought to make spectator and TV coverage easier, it made itself less like rallying of old. Long stages, remote service areas and even entire rallies like the Safari Rally, of Kenya, were dropped. In came more Super Special Stages, single service parks, shorter stages over smaller areas and, with it, as the WRC tried to make itself more easily 'watchable', so it made itself more like rallycross.
In the UK, what was heralded as a brave new era when Channel 4 began terrestrial TV coverage in 2002, which later moved to ITV, eventually shifted to ITV4, then Dave, then ESPN, and then, by 2013, nobody. For most of this decade, the WRC has pulled in four eligible points-scoring manufacturers a season. Between 2000 and 2004, there were seven.
Is it unfair to think that watching WRC, then, became watching fewer cars than you were used to, and not necessarily very interesting ones at that, raced by people you don't know in places you don't care about and largely won by the same man? Perhaps. But there are only so many sports you can follow, right?
I'll admit I haven't watched it a great deal recently. And then the other week this video landed, which features WRC driver Thierry Neuville making a Hyundai i20 do things I had not considered possible. The way it moves but stays flat over rough terrain, the way it lands but doesn't bounce, the way it brakes but doesn't dive, the way it shifts from straight line to turning: about half a dozen times in this clip what I am sure is a certain accident turns into perfect control. The suspension and tyre tech must be off the scale.
Matt
Photos: LAT Photo, Red Bull Content Pool]
Will be watching the Rally Cross at Silverstone this year though.
The biggest problem by far though, when it comes to watching it on tv is the editing of the coverage. There is far to much in-car footage used, too much time spent interviewing the drivers and too much waffle from the presenters. The images we really want to see as fans, are cars going impossibly sideways around corners etc, and on average in minute 30 min highlights program there is 5 mins of external car action.
This is why rallycross does much better on tv, it's all external footage. I appreciate it's easier to cover a whole rallycross track with about 4-5 cameras, but tv companies have to understand that it is external footage that draws the viewers in.
In-car footage gives you no impression of what the car is doing, and as for virtual spectator well, i might as well get the PlayStation out and do my own rally!!
There is still s lot of people willing to overcome the discomfort of travelling and follow the rallying. But without extensive TV coverage there is no hope to bring more money into the sport.
I still think it needs far more & better promotion...you only have to look on here and various motorsport/ car forums, and Rallying lags behind many series. So, something isn't working.
I still miss the age of the bigger cars but the driving is still very entertaining though as has already been mentioned it's getting too full of waffle (the same crap spoils the highlights of the Goodwood revival/festival of speed, gormless presenters flapping their lips when I want to see the bloody cars! I try to watch as much as I can on the live stream but it can be choppy).
I like Rallycross but it's not quite the same.
In the first year he pumped in tons of money to build the sports profile on TV, with lots of film crews and helicopters to collect the footage from stage so they could quickly edit the footage. But without the clout of the F1 series forcing the coverage to be bought, the investment started to dry up and the TV coverage quality collapsed as they cut back on external footage.
This coincided with an attempt to make the sport more TV friendly with short compact events with no night running, destroying its basic DNA. Then the manufacturers started to leave.
We then saw David Richards walk away and the TV rights went to people who didn't have a clue, first to North One who tried to move the series to a more online promoted basis, that was a disaster, they lost a ton of money. You then had North one sold to a Russian Oligarch who found himself within a year in court with his assets seized, so the WRC found itself with no TV promoter. The FIA stripped North One of its TV rights so we ended up with no promoter, it relied on each individual event having to do its own TV deal, which as expected resulted in bugger all promotion.
Red Bull then got its hands on the promotion of the sport and we have seen a slow rebuilding of the series start to gain traction again.
It's been tragic to watch the sport go from it's heights to lows as they destroyed the DNA of the sport whilst simultaneously cocking up the promotion and car spec rules (no active centre diffs and low power engines = boring cars), things are turning around now with the return to more powerful engines and active transmitions, which is why that Hyundai looks so amazing.
They need to re-introduce the use of puncture proof tyres (moose inside) and we will be there for the cars to push hard and not be out of the picture as soon as they have a puncture.
went to a so called spectator stage at a castle grounds... utter rubbish, cars were too restricted, couldnt get near,
complained and got money back..
forest stages were epic, tho to watch...
tried to watch on tv.. the the tv scheduling is just a mess...
trying to follow it is disjointed.... the commentry is poor..
needs better stages, and also dont care what each each driver has to say after each stage...
had high hopes for the new cars, but they just look odd with the squared of arches...
rally cross is more exciting, to watch..
Lydden 2017 ,Mettet ,Belgium 2016, 2017 ,Hockenheim 2017 ,Estering ,Germany 2016 ,Holjes ,Sweden 2015.
Lydden 2017, Mettet ,Belgium 2016, 2017 ,Hockenheim 2017 ,Estering ,Germany 2016 ,Holjes ,Sweden 2015.
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