MOTORSPORT: Rallycross revival plan for Oz

Four-car races on short gravel and tarmac tracks in the wind
Australia, it seems, is set to follow the world trend back to rallycross, or RX for short.

Rallycross combines rallying with side-by-side racing and is run on tracks that are part-tarmac and part-gravel, with jumps and sometimes water splashes to add to the action and excitement.

It originated in Britain in the late 1960s and took off in Australia soon after, featuring such notable drivers as Peter Brock, but later faded from the motorsport landscape.

Variations of it have long been popular in Scandanavia and this year a Federation Internationale de l’Automobile-sanctioned new World Rallycross Championship began, predominantly in Europe. There also is an American-based series called Global Rallycross.

Charismatic Norwegian and 2003 world rally champion Petter Solberg has won the first World Rallycross Championship, which also has featured stars including Swede Mattias Ekstrom. Global Rallycross competitors have included the likes of Travis Pastrana and Ken Block, the latter recently launching his latest show car, a 1965 Ford Mustang dubbed the Hoonicorn, in Las Vegas.

Australia’s top international rally driver, Chris Atkinson, has been mentioned recently as a potential rallycross competitor, too.

In what has become known as the World RX, six cars compete in races – but apparently the plan is for only four cars at a time in the Australian revival.

One of the beauties of rallycross is that events are easily contained to one day.

It also is a form of motorsport that could have great appeal to manufacturers, particularly those disaffected by traditional rallying, as it is 'friendly' to spectators, TV and now the Internet.

Rallysport Mag, the most avid media follower of rallying in Australia, revealed the plans for a revival of rallycross on its website late last night.

"Plans are afoot to reintroduce rallycross to Australia in the very near future," long-time rally correspondent Jeff Whitten reported at rallycrossmag.com.au.

Whitten claimed to have been told by sources that "a new rallycross series, similar to that being run at the moment in the UK, Europe and the USA, is being introduced, initially at a track about an hour’s drive from Melbourne".

"While initial details are sketchy, a further announcement will be made once the ink dries on contracts," Whitten said.

"Full details of the new series will be announced in the not-too-distant future."

During the brief heyday of rallycross in Australia in the 1970s it was held at venues such as Calder Park in Melbourne, Catalina Park at Katoomba in NSW and Tailem Bend in South Australia.

Holden, Ford, Renault and British Leyland had factory teams and the big-name drivers included Brock, Allan Moffat, Alan Hamilton, Bob Watson, Evan Green, Colin Bond, Barry Ferguson and Bruce Hodgson.

The sport attracted national television coverage for a time.

Whitten recalled that rallycross stopped in Australia after several seasons "because of difficulties in obtaining suitable permanent circuits".

"But many lament the disappearance of the high-speed action that the events provided," he said.

He recounted that the tracks that used "were long enough to provide exciting racing and short enough for spectators to see the full track".

"In the proposed new series, four cars will compete at a time," Whitten said.

"Eligible vehicles will be cars that fit all CAMS rally categories.

"It is likely that international categories will be adopted, allowing turbo 4WD vehicles and specially-modified cars to compete as well.

"[Race] Meetings will be held on one day and there are plans to conduct practice, heats and a final for each category on that one-day format."