Rally NZ cancelled

Rally New Zealand organisers have pulled the plug on this year’s FIA World Rally Championship event, blaming the ongoing challenges created by the coronavirus pandemic.

The event was due to be held in and around Auckland in September but a decision to axe it for 2020 was made with New Zealand’s borders closed to international visitors for the foreseeable future.

“It became clear that with our borders closed to international travel and the logistics required to host thousands of international visitors as part of the World Rally Championship, that the September 2020 date was not practical,” says Michael Goldstein, chief executive of Rally New Zealand 2020.

“Over the last 12 months our team have done a huge amount of work to be ready to host a WRC event. We are disappointed to not host the World Rally Championship in 2020 but at the same time the issues around the world put this into context.”

Despite disappointment at this year’s cancellation, Rally New Zealand organisers are hoping the event can be a feature of the WRC’s 2021 calendar. 

Yves Matton, FIA rally director, says: “We were all excited to see New Zealand reclaim its place in the FIA World Rally Championship in 2020 after a seven-year absence and we are naturally sad that we will not be able to go there this year.

“MotorSport New Zealand and the organising team have done fantastic work so far and we are already looking ahead to the rally taking place in the near future.”