Rally Australia has been cancelled because of the NSW bushfires, meaning Hyundai has won the manufacturer title in the World Rally Championship for the first time.
It also means Australia is finished in the World Rally Championship until a new location is found to snare the Antipodean round back from New Zealand, where it will be held next September.
The final Rally Oz at Coffs Harbour was to have been held from this Thursday until Sunday, but the planned course had already been shortened and today the event was cancelled because of the devastating bushfires nearby and the continuing imminent threats from them.
The WRC teams are happy the rally has been cancelled – indeed they were angry the decision was not made earlier.
Hyundai becomes the WRC’s champion manufacturer for the first time, with last year’s top make Toyota unable to overtake the Korean brand’s 18-point lead after last month’s Rally Spain.
Estonian Ott Tanak had already clinched the drivers’ championship in a Toyota Yaris in Spain but he will switch to Hyundai next year to drive an i20.
Hyundai’s Belgian driver Thierry Neuville is runner-up in the championship for the fourth straight year, while Frenchman Sebastien Ogier is third this year in a Citroen C3 after his six straight world titles – the first four with Volkswagen before two with M-Sport Ford.
The Australian Rally Championship’s final round which was to have been part of Rally Oz was cancelled last weekend, as were other support categories in the event.
A state of emergency has been declared in NSW because of the bushfires and Rally Australia organisers said the cancellation of this week’s event had been made after extensive consultation with the state government, emergency services and the local community, and the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), the world governing body of motorsport.
Confederation of Australian Motor Sport president and Rally Australia chairman Andrew Papadopoulos said there was no option but to cancel the event “considering the safety of the more than 1000 people involved as officials, competitors and in support roles”.
“Considering the best interests and safety of everyone involved in the rally, and of course the wider community, it is not appropriate to conduct the rally,” Papadopoulos said.
“Our thoughts are with the NSW community, especially the people who have lost loved ones, livelihoods and homes as a result of the fires in northern NSW, and we thank the rally community for your support and understanding.”
It’s not clear whether Toyota still plans to stage the world debut of the Toyota Yaris GR-4 hot hatch prototype at Rally Australia this Sunday.