WRC Returns to Turkey After Seven Years!

The determined efforts of the officials of the Turkish Automobile Sports Federation (TOSFED) to bring the World Rally Championship back to Turkey have paid off, and Turkey has been reinstated on the championship calendar.
According to the 2018 World Rally Championship calendar announced yesterday (21 September 2017) by the FIA World Motor Sport Council, meeting in Paris, Turkey, which takes the place of Poland, will host the tenth round of the 13-event calendar in Muğla and its surroundings on 13-16 September.BACK IN TURKEY AFTER SEVEN YEARS
Having beaten the other candidate countries – New Zealand, Croatia, Japan, Chile, Kenya and South Africa – to a place on the calendar, Turkey previously hosted the World Rally Championship six times in Antalya and Istanbul between 2003 and 2010. With the rally returning after seven years, giving Turkish motorsport a major boost, it will also be the biggest sporting event organised in Turkey in 2018.PRESIDENT YAZICI: "WE ARE VERY HAPPY FOR OUR COUNTRY AND OUR SPORT"
TOSFED President Serkan YAZICI commented on the news: "First and foremost, we thank our President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who believed in us and supported us in bringing this event back to our country, as well as our Minister of Youth and Sports, our Director General of Sports, all ministry staff, the Head of the Spor Toto Organisation, the Mayor of Muğla Metropolitan Municipality, the Governor of Muğla, the District Governors of Ula and Marmaris, the Muğla Provincial Director of Youth and Sports, and the Mayors of Ula and Marmaris. We have managed to stand out among some very important countries and return to the World Championship calendar after seven years. God willing, this event will help our country pave the way for other major events. We are very happy for our country and our sport."

MANUFACTURERS BACK TURKEY
WRC Promoter Managing Director Oliver CIESLA also spoke about the return to Turkey of the World Rally Championship, in which Ford, Hyundai and Toyota – all with factories in Turkey – compete as teams. "The 2018 season calendar is made up of an interesting mix of traditional events and new ones. Turkey is being added back in among events such as Sweden, Argentina and Finland. Turkey is a very important automotive market in terms of both production and sales. With car sales reaching a million in 2016 and a rise in interest in the sport, Turkey is returning to the calendar. In the World Rally Championship, we offer manufacturers a competitive environment in which to race and showcase their production-based models. We are delighted that Turkey's return to the calendar is supported and warmly welcomed by the manufacturers in the championship."
A MAJOR BOOST TO PROMOTING THE COUNTRY
The event, which will make a major contribution to the country's promotion and image, will be broadcast in 228 countries on 132 separate television channels and will also bring a significant economic boost to the region where it is held. In the 2016 season, the programmes broadcast worldwide on WRC TV and Red Bull TV reached a global audience of more than 700 million, with more than 12,000 hours of programming shown around the world…
WRC ORGANISERS IMPRESSED BY THE STAGES
WRC officials, who visited Turkey in August and carried out detailed research and inspections in Muğla and its districts, said they found the stages particularly suitable and competitive. The special stages passing through the service park, a first in World Rally Championship history, also excited the WRC organisers…
DRESS REHEARSAL IN MARMARIS THIS OCTOBER
Rally Marmaris, which will serve as a rehearsal for the WRC this year, will be held on 20-22 October as part of the European Rally Cup. Factory teams competing in the World Championship will send engineers and personnel to this event to gather the information needed for 2018 and begin preparations straight away…
2018 WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP CALENDAR