Should the ARC Cups adjust their format?

Low entry numbers in the Junior and 2WD Cups have been a constant dilemma for a year and a half, so maybe there are some adjustments needed for next season.

“I just wonder with the Junior Cup,” RallySport Magazine’s Peter Whitten commented on episode 51 of the podcast, released on Wednesday.

“I know it’s only four of the six events counting towards the championship, but that just means that in a lot of cases, we’re not going to see all those drivers competing up against each other all the time.

“In something like the Junior Cup do we need to be saying, ‘Okay, these are the four events that count towards it’.

“I know that would suit some people and not suit others, but maybe that’s the way that we can put everybody together in the same basket, see who is the quickest, who has the most reliable car over those four events combined, and then we come up with the winner from there.”

The discussion topic was off the back of the news that Molly Spalding will be competing in the Junior class at Rally Queensland, to join Mitch Garrad and Jaidyn Gluskie.

Garrad and Gluskie are the only two Junior Cup drivers to score points thus far in 2024. It follows on from last season where only three scored points for the entire season.

A format like mentioned would hark back to the classic days of the Production World Rally Championship where only set events counted. Competitors had no choice in their events.

While the choice of events might also prompt better entry numbers, different qualification rules might also boost numbers.

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