Get up to speed with the world of rallying and learn all about the WRC (2024)

Established in 1973, the World Rally Championship (WRC) has come a long way since the very first race at the Rallye Monte-Carlo. The cars have changed significantly, as have the rules. So let’s answer some of your burning questions about the sport.

A rally is a stage race. Each of the three days of racing is divided into several special stages, which are the only parts of the weekend that are actually timed. Each stage is generally between 10 and 50km in length, with the entire event covering around 350km in total.

Each rally features numerous stages with some taking on extra significance. Super special stages tend to be short and create a spectacle as they change the character of the rally – such as a change of surface or a head-to-heat format is used – while power stages usually run as the final stage of a rally. It may sound like the bonus level of a video game, but in reality, it awards additional championship points to the five fastest crews throughout the stage, regardless of where they finished in the rally.

The rally winner is simply the driver with the fastest total time across all the stages. Points are then assigned to each driver based on their finishing position at the rally: 25 points to the winner, 18 to second place, 15 to third and down to just one point for tenth place. The WRC champion is the driver with the most points at the end of the season.

How fast can the cars go?

The average speed record of 124.73kph was set in 2015 by Jari-Matti Latvala in Finland. During this rally he reached 200kph on several occasions, which is particularly impressive when you consider the terrain. While this may be well short of the speeds regularly reached in Formula One, WRC drivers have to navigate sharp turns on narrow roads and on surfaces that range from asphalt and gravel to even snow. Go for a ride in the passenger seat with Sébastien Ogier and you'll never ask him to speed up.

Since 2017, WRC cars have featured 1.6-litre engines that produce around 380 horsepower, as well as an electric boost that allows them to reach as much as 520 horsepower for a few seconds. It's a lot of power, much more than WRC cars ran for decades when they were limited to 315 horsepower. If that seems overly cautious, it's for good reason. Perhaps the most famous era in WRC featured the machines of 'Group B' in the 1980s. During this time, WRC cars had no power limits and could carry up to 600 horsepower. They proved too dangerous, however, and these cars were banned after the death of Finnish driver Henri Toivonen.

At the speeds of these cars, your average GPS simply would not cut it, even if it were allowed. Instead, each crew (driver and co-driver) does their own course survey at the start of the race week. They get a maximum of two passages on each stage, during which the driver/co-driver take notes on every turn of the course. And we're talking a lot of notes.

Julien Ingrassia (Ogier’s co-driver) explained the process: “I transcribe while trying to take as many visual cues as possible. When you are going 180kph and then you have to take a sharp left, what I am saying is crucial. A note said five-tenths of a second too late can ruin everything.”

That's right, the co-driver is giving a steady stream of live directions to the driver, including how far ahead the next turn is and how fast they can go through it.

Yes and no. The timed stages take place on closed courses. However, each driver is responsible for getting themselves from the end of each stage to the start of the next one. Often this means driving on public sections of road where the WRC cars must obey traffic regulations just like any other car.

Thirty drivers for only three manufacturers (Toyota, Ford and Hyundai) isn't much. That said, it's explainable. The brands involved have been manufacturing streamlined cars for the WRC for years, while other car companies have not developed the models or know-how.

As you can imagine, it's impossible to set up pits in the middle of the woods. Mechanics must therefore wait until the drivers' cars are parked in a service park set up between two stages so that they can repair or adjust them. But they must be careful as they don't have the whole evening as their work must not exceed 10, 30 or 45 minutes, depending on the allotted time.

Go beyond the limits and there'll be a penalty. And if ever it's necessary to change a tyre in the middle of a special, then the driver and the co-driver take care of it, with the tools and other parts stored in the car.

Traditionally it has been French drivers that have dominated in WRC. Sébastien Loeb currently leads the way with nine world titles, while fellow Frenchman Sébastien Ogier has eight (with his last title triumph coming in 2021). There have also been numerous Finish drivers who have excelled in WRC, with the latest being Kalle Rovanperä who won the title in 2022.

All WRC drivers are able to expertly navigate across all types of surfaces, whether it’s sand, gravel or asphalt. But driving in the snow can sometimes present a challenge and requires a huge amount of skill. This may explain why Scandinavians, like Stig Blomqvist and Marcus Grönholm – who grew up driving in the snow – remain the record holders for victories in this speciality, with five wins apiece.