The first round of the 2014 British Rally Championship, Rally North Wales, has been cancelled due to insufficient entries and the consequential potential loss of more than £10,000.
Less than 80 entries had been received as of Friday, forcing the organising club to cancel the event. - the second year in a row that the event has been cancelled.
“We needed 106 entries just to break-even this year. With less than 80 entries the Club was facing a potential loss of in excess of £10k, which we simply cannot afford. Cancelling last year’s rally cost the Club a similar amount and wiped out any contingency funding for this year” said Guy Weaver, Chairman of W&SSCC Ltd.
“The Club cannot sustain this level of loss for a second consecutive year. All entry fees received will be returned in full.”
The event would have been the first of seven rounds in the 2014 MSA British Rally Championship and a qualifying round of the MSA Mintex British Historic and the MSA Pirelli Welsh Stage Championships.
"I feel for the organising team who have done all they can under the circumstances, committing many months of tireless work to run what was shaping up to be a first class rally. The forests are apparently in first class condition, arguably the best in Europe and it is a real shame that the rally has a significant gap in the finances to make it viable." said BRC Manager Mark Taylor.
"It would seem that alongside current uncertainties and lack of available sponsorship, motorsport seems to be lagging behind in the economic recovery, taking its toll on stage rallying."
The first round of the Championship will now then be Pirelli Carlisle RB Foundation Rally on May 3 and 4. The Championship regulations provide for the loss of a qualifying round which now means that the BRC will be decided over six qualifying events and seven rounds, with competitors discounting their two single worst scores.
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