Jost Capito disappointed by the cancellation of the Rally of China

The rumor turned into truth late yesterday afternoon, when a press release from the promoter of the World Rally Championship came to confirm the cancellation of the Rally of China, scheduled for September 9 to 11. Torrential floods and storms caused heavy damage to roads which the Chinese sleeve of the WRC, damage cannot be repaired in time before the start of the race.

A brutal cancellation, without a replacement test, which disappoints Volkswagen Motorsport director Jost Capito, who did not hide his desire to see Sébastien Ogier, Jari-Matti Latvala and Andreas Mikkelsen, compete in the Asian stages in a country which is of major importance in the commercial strategy of the German group.

“We deeply regret that the intensive preparation implemented by the organizer, the promoter, the FIA ​​and the teams, who worked together to promote the return of the WRC to China, has not been rewarded, underlines Capito.

We would obviously have liked to race in China, and participate in this round in this country which is an extremely important market. We will now focus on a return of the WRC to China next year. »

There are now five rallies remaining before the end of the season, the next three of which will be on predominantly asphalt surfaces (Spain includes asphalt and gravel). The leader of the ranking Sébastien Ogier could thus get closer sooner than expected to a fourth consecutive title in the event of good cumulative results in Germany from this weekend and in Corsica at the beginning of October.