Andreas Mikkelsen
Co-drivers' Champion:
Torstein Eriksen
Teams' Champion:
Toksport WRT 3
Challenger Drivers' Champion:
Kajetan Kajetanowicz
Challenger Co-drivers' Champion:
Maciej Szczepaniak Previous 2022 Next 2024 Parent series:
World Rally Championship
Support series:
WRC3
Junior WRC Andreas Mikkelsen won his second WRC-2 drivers championship.
The 2023 FIA WRC2 Championship was the eleventh season of WRC2, a rallying championship organised and governed by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile as the second-highest tier of international rallying. The category was open to crews with cars complying with Group Rally2 regulations. The championship began in January 2023 with the Rallye Monte-Carlo and concluded in November with Rally Japan, and ran in support of the 2023 World Rally Championship.
Emil Lindholm and Reeta Hämäläinen entered as the defending drivers' and co-drivers' champions, while Toksport WRT entered as the defending teams' champions.
Andreas Mikkelsen and Torstein Eriksen became the 2023 WRC-2 champions, their second title victories in the championship. Toksport WRT 3 took victory in the teams' championship.
Calendar
class=notpageimage| A map showing the locations of the rallies in the 2023 championship. Event headquarters are marked with black dots.The 2023 season was contested over thirteen rounds crossing Europe, Africa, North and South America, and Asia.
Round | Start date | Finish date | Rally | Rally headquarters | Surface | Stages | Distance | Ref. |
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1 | 19 January | 22 January | Rallye Automobile Monte Carlo | Monte Carlo, Monaco | Mixed | 18 | 325.02 km | |
2 | 9 February | 12 February | Rally Sweden | Umeå, Västerbotten County, Sweden | Snow | 18 | 301.18 km | |
3 | 16 March | 19 March | Rally Guanajuato México | León, Guanajuato, Mexico | Gravel | 23 | 315.69 km | |
4 | 20 April | 23 April | Croatia Rally | Zagreb, Croatia | Tarmac | 20 | 301.26 km | |
5 | 11 May | 14 May | Rally de Portugal | Matosinhos, Porto, Portugal | Gravel | 19 | 329.06 km | |
6 | 1 June | 4 June | Rally Italia Sardegna | Olbia, Sardinia, Italy | Gravel | 19 | 322.88 km | |
7 | 22 June | 25 June | Safari Rally Kenya | Naivasha, Nakuru County, Kenya | Gravel | 19 | 355.92 km | |
8 | 20 July | 23 July | Rally Estonia | Tartu, Estonia | Gravel | 21 | 300.41 km | |
9 | 3 August | 6 August | Rally Finland | Jyväskylä, Central Finland, Finland | Gravel | 22 | 320.56 km | |
10 | 7 September | 10 September | Acropolis Rally Greece | Lamia, Central Greece, Greece | Gravel | 15 | 270.89 km | |
11 | 28 September | 1 October | Rally Chile | Concepción, Biobío, Chile | Gravel | 16 | 321.06 km | |
12 | 26 October | 29 October | Central European Rally | Passau, Bavaria, Germany | Tarmac | 18 | 310.01 km | |
13 | 16 November | 19 November | Rally Japan | Toyota, Aichi, Japan | Tarmac | 22 | 304.66 km | |
Sources: |
Calendar changes
The championship was expected to be expanded to fourteen rounds from the thirteen rounds in the previous season by WRC Promoter GmbH, with eight Europe-based rallies and six fly-away events covering the season. However, when the calendar was released in late November following a lengthy delay, the number of the events was reduced to thirteen with the anticipated Saudi Arabian rally based at Jeddah, absent from the calendar.
- Rally Mexico returned to championship after missing the 2021 and 2022 championships. The organizers of the rally had previously held a national event in 2022 as a prelude for the 2023 return.
- Rally Chile rejoined the calendar after having been ruled out in 2020 and 2021 due to the Chilean protests and COVID-19 pandemic respectively.
- The Central European Rally, a tri-nation event held across Germany, Austria and the Czech Republic, was introduced into the championship, replacing the Catalonian Rally. The rally was based out of southeast Germany, in the city of Passau in Bavaria, and ran on tarmac.
- Rally New Zealand, a round of the 2022 season, was not included on the calendar, but the organizers tried to seek an opportunity for a 2024 return as a part of the rotation program with Rally Australia.
- Ypres Rally Belgium, which was a part of the championship for the prior two seasons, dropped off the calendar and instead formed part of the 2023 British Rally Championship.
Several rally organizers also expressed their interests to return to the championship, including Rally Argentina, Rally Australia, the German Rally, and an event in Northern Ireland. The Argentine, Australian and Northern Irish bids failed and Germany organized the Central European Rally along with Austria and the Czech Republic. In addition to the candidate events, the WRC Promoter GmbH was also working on the calendar expansion to the Middle East and United States, but no rallies were added for the 2023 season.
Location changes
- The headquarters of the Rally Italia Sardegna would be once again moved from Alghero to Olbia. The 2020 event was previously headquartered in Olbia as a result of major route revisions due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
- The 2023 edition of the Safari Rally was headquartered at the Lakeside town of Naivasha. The rally was previously headquartered in the Kenyan capital Nairobi.
Entries
The following teams and crews contested the 2023 WRC2. Teams had to enter two crews to be eligible for Teams' Championship points.
Regulation changes
The 2022 junior championships of the class, WRC-2 Junior, were renamed as WRC-2 Challenger to focus on the experience of the competitors instead of age, while the Masters series was opened to Rally2, Rally3, Rally4, Rally5 and R-GT competitors under the WRC framework, ceasing to be based on WRC2.
Results and standings
Season summary
Scoring system
Points are awarded to the top ten classified finishers in each event. Power Stage points are also awarded in the drivers' and co-drivers' championships, with three points awarded to the first place finisher on the stage, two to second place, and one to third. A team has to enter two cars to score points in an event. Drivers and teams must nominate a scoring rally when they enter the event and the best six scores from seven nominated rallies will count towards the final classification. Registered drivers are able to enter additional rallies with Priority 2 status without scoring points.
Position | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th | 9th | 10th |
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Points | 25 | 18 | 15 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 |
FIA WRC2 Championship for Drivers
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Notes: |
FIA WRC2 Championship for Co-Drivers
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Notes: |
FIA WRC2 Championship for Teams
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FIA WRC2 Challenger Championship for Drivers
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FIA WRC2 Challenger Championship for Co-Drivers
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Notes
- The Monte Carlo Rally is run on a tarmac and snow surface.
- ^ Nikolay Gryazin is a Russian national, but competes as an Authorised Neutral Athlete in accordance with recommendations made by the International Olympic Committee, following a decision by the FIA to ban all connections with Russia following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
- ^ Konstantin Aleksandrov is a Russian national, but competes as an Authorised Neutral Athlete in accordance with recommendations made by the International Olympic Committee, following a decision by the FIA to ban all connections with Russia following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
- ^ No Power Stage points were awarded for WRC-2 as the Power Stage was interrupted before all competitors could complete the stage.
References
- ^ "2022 FIA World Rally Championship – Sporting regulations" (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
- "Lindholm claims WRC2 crown as Munster grabs surprise victory in Japan". wrc.com. WRC Promoter GmbH. 13 November 2022. Retrieved 13 November 2022.
- ^ "Mikkelsen claims WRC2 title in last-gasp Central European Rally push". wrc.com. WRC Promotor GmbH. 29 October 2023. Retrieved 29 October 2023.
- "Itinerary Rallye Automobile de Monte-Carlo 2023". eWRC-results.com. Archived from the original on 17 January 2023. Retrieved 19 November 2022.
- "Itinerary Rally Sweden 2023". eWRC-results.com. Archived from the original on 15 March 2023. Retrieved 19 November 2022.
- "Itinerary Rally Guanajuato México 2023". eWRC-results.com. Archived from the original on 31 March 2023. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
- "Itinerary Rally Croatia Rally 2023". eWRC-results.com. Archived from the original on 1 May 2023. Retrieved 21 February 2023.
- "Itinerary Vodafone Rally de Portugal 2023". eWRC-results.com. Archived from the original on 10 March 2023. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
- "Itinerary Rally Italia Sardegna 2023". eWRC-results.com. Archived from the original on 2 February 2023. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
- "Itinerary Safari Rally Kenya 2023". eWRC-results.com. Archived from the original on 7 March 2023. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
- "Itinerary Rally Estonia 2023". eWRC-results.com. Archived from the original on 31 March 2023. Retrieved 23 March 2023.
- "Itinerary Secto Rally Finland 2023". eWRC-results.com. Archived from the original on 1 March 2023. Retrieved 1 March 2023.
- "Itinerary EKO Acropolis Rally 2023". eWRC-results.com. Archived from the original on 8 May 2023. Retrieved 8 May 2023.
- "Itinerary Rally Chile BIOBÍO 2023". eWRC-results.com. Archived from the original on 2 July 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
- "Itinerary Central European Rally 2023". eWRC-results.com. Archived from the original on 2 July 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
- "Itinerary Rally Japan 2023". eWRC-results.com. Archived from the original on 2 July 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
- "WRC poewrs into 2023 with exciting new-look calendar". wrc.com. WRC Promoter GmbH. 25 November 2022. Archived from the original on 14 March 2023. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
- "FIA World Rally Championship calendar for 2023 gets green light". Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. 25 November 2022. Archived from the original on 19 February 2023. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
- Howard, Tom (30 June 2022). "Time running out for UK 2023 WRC calendar bid". autosport.com. Motorsport Network. Archived from the original on 27 August 2022. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
- Lindroos, Pontus (22 October 2022). "2023 WRC calendar to be presented later than expected". thecheckeredflag.co.uk. Archived from the original on 20 October 2022. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
- Evans, David (25 November 2022). "Saudi Arabia confirms its WRC ambitions". dirtfish.com. DirtFish. Archived from the original on 26 November 2022. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
- Ramírez, Luis (12 July 2022). "Mexico set to re-join the WRC calendar in 2023". motorsport.com. Motorsport Network. Archived from the original on 26 August 2022. Retrieved 26 August 2022.
- Evans, David (10 February 2022). "Rally Mexico to host nations rally in WRC return bid". dirtfish.com. DirtFish. Archived from the original on 19 February 2022. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
- Evans, David (29 November 2019). "WRC's 2020 Rally Chile cancelled due to political and social unrest". autosport.com. Motorsport Network. Archived from the original on 4 December 2019. Retrieved 30 November 2019.
- Craig, Jason (26 March 2021). "Acropolis Rally returns to WRC for the first time since 2013". autosport.com. Motorsport Network. Archived from the original on 26 March 2021. Retrieved 27 March 2021.
- Evans, David (25 November 2022). "2023 WRC calendar revealed". dirtfish.com. Archived from the original on 25 November 2022. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
- Howard, Tom (25 November 2022). "Mexico, Chile and new European rally join 2023 WRC calendar". Motorsport.com. Motorsport Network. Archived from the original on 25 November 2022. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
- Howard, Tom (29 September 2022). "Rally New Zealand to miss out on 2023 WRC slot". autosport.com. Motorsport Network. Archived from the original on 29 September 2022. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
- Lindroos, Pontus (24 October 2022). "Ypres Rally to host BRC round instead of WRC in 2023". thecheckeredflag.co.uk. Archived from the original on 24 October 2022. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
- Howard, Tom; Lillo, Sergio (4 January 2022). "WRC investigating possible return to Argentina in 2023". autosport.com. Motorsport Network. Archived from the original on 27 August 2022. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
- van Leeuwen, Andrew; Howard, Tom (6 July 2022). "Rally Australia targeting WRC return in 2023". autosport.com. Motorsport Network. Archived from the original on 27 August 2022. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
- Howard, Tom (28 January 2022). "WRC supporting Rally Northern Ireland bid for 2023". autosport.com. Motorsport Network. Archived from the original on 27 August 2022. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
- Lindroos, Pontus (16 May 2022). "Rallye Deutschland plans a return to 2023 WRC calendar". thecheckeredflag.co.uk. Archived from the original on 27 August 2022. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
- Siriatou, Sofia (22 September 2022). "Rally Argentina stays out of the 2023 WRC calendar". wrcfanatix.com. Archived from the original on 29 September 2022. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
- Howard, Tom (31 August 2022). "UK set to miss out as expanded 2023 WRC calendar progresses". Motorsport.com. Motorsport Network. Archived from the original on 29 September 2022. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
- Howard, Tom (28 July 2022). "WRC eyeing 2023 Middle East round, USA expansion plans continue". autosport.com. Motorsport Network. Archived from the original on 27 August 2022. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
- "L'edizione 2023 del Rally Italia Sardegna si svolgerà dall'1 al 4 giugno" [The 2023 edition of Rally Italia Sardegna will take place from 1 to 4 June]. paradisola.it (in Italian). 26 November 2022. Archived from the original on 27 November 2022. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
- "Olibia suburb test to launch Sardinia event". wrc.com. WRC Promoter GmbH. 2 February 2022. Archived from the original on 2 February 2022. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
- Oyugi, Ochieng (26 November 2022). "Rally: WRC Safari Rally 2023 dates announced". Standardmedia.co.ke. Archived from the original on 6 December 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
- "Safari back in 2020". wrc.com. WRC Promoter GmbH. 27 September 2019. Archived from the original on 27 September 2019. Retrieved 28 September 2019.
- ^ "FIA announces World Motor Sport Council decisions in relation to the situation in Ukraine". Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. 1 March 2022. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
- ^ "Emergency measures due to Russian invasion of Ukraine" (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. 4 March 2022. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
- ^ "Entry List Rallye Automobile de Monte-Carlo 2023". eWRC-results.com. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
- ^ "Entry List Rallye Sweden 2023". eWRC-results.com. Retrieved 17 January 2023.
- ^ "Entry List Rally Guanajuato México 2023". eWRC-results.com. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
- ^ "Entry List Croatia Rally 2023". eWRC-results.com. Retrieved 28 March 2023.
- ^ "Entry List Vodafone Rally de Portugal 2023". eWRC-results.com. Retrieved 19 April 2023.
- ^ "Entry List Rally Italia Sardegna 2023". eWRC-results.com. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
- ^ "Entry List Safari Rally Kenya 2023". eWRC-results.com. Retrieved 29 May 2023.
- ^ "Entry List WRC Rally Estonia 2023". eWRC-results.com. Retrieved 27 June 2023.
- ^ "Entry List WRC Secto Rally Finland 2023". eWRC-results.com. Retrieved 8 July 2023.
- "2023 FIA World Rally Championship – Sporting regulations" (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. 15 December 2022. p. 16. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
- "Breaking: Gryazin penalty hands Rossel WRC2 win". wrc.com. WRC Promoter GmbH. 22 January 2023. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
- "Solberg secures WRC2 victory in Sweden". wrc.com. WRC Promoter GmbH. 12 February 2023. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
- "Greenasmith spearheads WRC2 Škoda sweep". wrc.com. WRC Promoter GmbH. 19 March 2023. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
- "Rossel doubles up with WRC2 triumph in Croatia". wrc.com. WRC Promoter GmbH. 23 April 2023. Retrieved 24 April 2023.
- "Solberg's heartbreak is Greensmith's gain in thrilling WRC2 conclusion". wrc.com. WRC Promoter GmbH. 14 May 2023. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
- "Fourmaux falters, handing Mikkelsen surprise WRC2 victory". wrc.com. WRC Promoter GmbH. 4 June 2023. Retrieved 4 June 2023.
- "Cool Kajto secures Safari success in WRC2". wrc.com. WRC Promoter GmbH. 25 June 2023. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
- "Majestic Mikkelsen bags WRC2 Estonia crown". wrc.com. WRC Promoter GmbH. 23 July 2023. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
- "Perfect Pajari storms to Finland WRC2 win". wrc.com. WRC Promoter GmbH. 6 August 2023. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
- "Title-hunting Mikkelsen strengthens WRC2 bid in Greece". wrc.com. WRC Promoter GmbH. 10 September 2023. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
- "Solberg's campaign ends on a high with WRC2 victory in Chile". wrc.com. WRC Promotor GmbH. 1 October 2023. Retrieved 1 October 2023.
- "Party time for Kajto as Pole secures WRC2 Challenger title in Japan*". wrc.com. WRC Promotor GmbH. 19 November 2023. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
- Barry, Luke (4 June 2023). "Power Stage points not awarded to WRC2 crews". dirtfish.com. DirtFish. Retrieved 5 June 2023.
- ^ "WRC 2 standings 2023". wrc.com. WRC Promoter GmbH. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
- ^ "Standings". fia.com. Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
External links
- Official website (in English, French, and Spanish)
- FIA WRC2 2023 at eWRC-results.com
- FIA WRC2 Challenger 2023 at eWRC-results.com
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