Pirelli BRC contract extended to 2014

Pirelli will provide tyres to the MSA British Rally Championship for the next two years. The premium manufacturer has supplied the control tyre to the series since 2007, and was previously contracted until the end of the 2012 season. Pirelli says the addition of two years has shown its ongoing commitment to national-level motorsport.

This year, the BRC has limited the series to two-wheel drive cars only, making the sport more accessible to drivers with smaller budgets and to entice manufacturer involvement. “The move to two-wheel-drive will generate closer competition and close up the difference between the entry- level classes and the cars running at the front of the field”, explains Mark Taylor from the BRC.

“It will also cap the cost of competing at the highest level in the UK and provide a clearer ladder of progression for newcomers to the sport, with the combination of these features enabling more drivers to aspire to a British Rally Championship title. We have had a fantastic working relationship with Pirelli over the past 11 years and are delighted to have this extension to the contract signed. We believe we are the best National Rally Championship in the world, which means we are pleased that the best tyre manufacturer in the world is on board.”
 
As well as providing tyres to the series, Pirelli gives one young driver a fully paid season in the series. This year, 27-year-old Finn Jukka Korhonen won the shoot-out and will contest the BRC as the Pirelli Star Driver in a Skoda Fabia R2. This year also marks the 21st anniversary of Pirelli sponsoring the Cumbrian round of the championship, which is based near the tyre manufacturer’s main UK plant in Carlisle and takes in stages of the Kielder Forest.

The BRC comprises six rallies, across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, starting with three gravel rallies at the Rallye Sunseeker International in Poole and Bournemouth; the Bulldog Rally North Wales Welshpool in Wales; and then the Pirelli International Rally in Cumbria. After that competitors go to the Scottish Borders’ Jim Clark International Rally on tarmac, followed by a second on the surface, the Todds Leap Rally Northern Ireland, a month later. Finally, the cars return to England for the International Rally of Yorkshire.
 
“Each of the six rallies have different surfaces and challenges that place a whole range of demands upon the tyre,” explains Carl Naylor, motorsport manager at Pirelli. “This not only enables the drivers to learn a range of driving skills and techniques, but means that they have to learn tyre control and strategy; and important part of being a world-class rally driver.
 
“We have provided the Pirelli Scorpion K6 gravel tyre and K4 tarmac tyre to the series for a number of years now and drivers have found them to be extremely durable and reliable while offering them the grip required of these demanding rally stages. We’re really pleased to be able to commit to the BRC for a further two years and believe that with all the changes being made this year, it’s going to be a very exciting series to be involved in. This deal also takes in the Pirelli Star Driver programme for 2013 and 2014.”

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