Evans Set to Become WRC Champion as Rally Saudi Arabia Is Cancelled
The Saudi WRC round was cancelled after team travel concerns and regional unrest, ending the 14-round season a round early, the FIA said.
- On Thursday, the FIA announced that Italy's Rally Sardinia will replace Saudi Arabia as the 2026 World Rally Championship season finale due to the situation in the Middle East.
- Toyota and Hyundai communicated to the FIA that team members could not travel due to company-wide safety policies, with Saudi Arabia originally scheduled as the 14th round for 11-14 November.
- M-Sport-Ford had been prepared to travel until Wednesday, when the British foreign office updated its advice against travel to parts of Saudi Arabia; the FIA had explored all options to proceed.
- The season will conclude early at Rally Sardinia on 1-4 October, rejecting speculation that Rally Catalunya in Spain would fill the vacancy instead.
- Welshman Elfyn Evans leads Toyota teammate Sami Pajari in the title race and is positioned to become Britain's first World Rally Championship winner since Richard Burns in 2001.
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Today, Thursday, the International Federation of Vehicles (FIA) announced the transfer of the final round of the 2026 World Championship of Rawls from Saudi Arabia to Italy, against the backdrop of the current situation in the Middle East region.
On Thursday, the FIA announced the cancellation of the final round of the World Rally Championship, as the competition was upset by the conflict in the Middle East.
Final rally of season in Saudi Arabia cancelled due to Middle East conflict
The conflict has disrupted motorsports competitions throughout the region with the cancellation of the Formula One Grand Prix in Saudi Arabia and rounds in Qatar and Abu Dhabi in doubt. "Ongoing regional developments mean that the WRC element of Rally Saudi Arabia will not proceed this year," FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem said in a statement, adding however the Middle East Regional Rally Championship will go ahead as planned in Saudi Arabia…
Evans set to become WRC champion as Rally Saudi Arabia is cancelled
The FIA has confirmed that the 2026 World Rally Championship season finale in Saudi Arabia has been cancelled and will not be replaced - so Rally Sardinia is now the last round.Saudi Arabia was due to host its rally on 11-14 November, but it was among many motorsport events in the Middle East facing uncertainty amid the ongoing conflict in the region.This decision follows weeks of ...Keep reading
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