Motorsport: Rally NZ on slippery slope as date shifted

Rally New Zealand will be shunted further down the competition calendar as the sports governing body, the FIA, looks to condense the World Rally Championship (WRC).

Rally New Zealand (RNZ) lost its popular April slot of the last three years to Argentina after the FIA announced today the WRC will visit Monte Carlo, Sweden, Mexico, Catalunya, Corsica and Argentina between January 18 and April 23.

RNZ chairman Morrie Chandler said the FIA made the alterations to reduce costs and travel time by grouping the 16 legs on the calendar physically closer together.

No date was indicated for the 2006 New Zealand leg, but Chandler said a decision would be made by the FIA in October.

New Zealand's hosting date was dependent on Rally Australia confirming when and where it would stage its leg.

Chandler conceded that today's announcement could also see RNZ jettisoned from the WRC as various teams continue to cry foul over spiralling costs.

The 2006 RNZ on the gravel roads of Northland and Waikato is confirmed, but its future after next year was anybody's guess, he said.

He added: "It's a signal from the world authority that the organisers need to work together to create a more financially acceptable championship."

Although RNZ was highly regarded, its isolation was extremely prohibitive Chandler said, despite travel times and costs to the South Pacific comparable to reaching South America.

Chandler said: "I think we're always at risk (of losing the rally) simply because of where we are physically in the world. It's a big exercise in cost and money and time to get here."

Chandler said the FIA suggested staging the rally in July, but that idea was quickly canned due to the inclement weather.

An official decision on the date will be made at the world council meeting in October.

- NZPA