No Control Tyre for Australian Rally Championship

Australian Rally Commission (ARCom) chairman Colin Trinder has announced that a control tyre will not be adopted for the 2008 Australian Rally Championship competition season. The Commission initially sought expressions of interest from tyre suppliers and other stakeholders last October, and Mr. Trinder states that the decision not to pursue an arrangement similar to that adopted by numerous other championships was only taken after extensive consultation with all relevant parties.

Mr Trinder said Rallycorp received “some very attractive offers”; in spite of this he states that the complexity involved in implementing a workable scheme in 2008 meant there was insufficient lead in time to fully explore all the options in detail for the upcoming season. “Moving to a strict control tyre regime simply cannot be rushed and unfortunately all the necessary moving parts required to reduce the overall cost of tyres for all competitors in the ARC could not be brought together in sufficient time for the 2008 season,” he said.

The deferral of a control tyre has not, however, removed from the agenda discussions on an agreement that will outlaw confidential tyres (special development tyres with limited availability) and make tyres more affordable for all involved. “There have been some very persuasive arguments for adopting a control tyre in the ARC, and there will now be sufficient lead in time to work through all the issues that need to be considered if a control tyre is to be introduced in 2009,” said Trinder.

Rallycorp chairman Mr Stephen Ashton believes the offers received concerning a deal for the 2008 season highlighted the potential benefits a control tyre could introduce to the ARC, such as a quality low cost tyre which would see significant cost reduction for many competitors. “We received expressions of interest from a variety of tyre manufacturers, some being very appealing,” said Ashton.

“It is unfortunate that timing constraints have stopped us from being able to move forward in 2008, however I believe we now have a solid foundation that we can build on which we can use to work towards an even better arrangement for the 2009 season.”