I agree with you on all points
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In this case it was simple and pure policy!
Some of you’ve already pointed some tips about what went wrong with the IRC/ERC transition but we’re missing the big picture: there was no room for 2 international major series like the WRC and the IRC.
In the last years of Mr. Mosley presidency (who didn’t care a sh.. about rally), FIA left WRC on the loose, with teams fighting each other for the use of ultra expensive tech cars.
Peugeot, Mitsubishi, Skoda, Suzuki, even Subaru quit the game because it was too expensive and technically too demanding, so Ford and Citroen were left alone for a couple of years. No one at the FIA quarters seemed to care, even if there were endless discussions about what type of cars should replace the almost extinct WRC2.0T category.
It’s also convenient to remember that previously the backup formula in WRC (F2), that began in the group A days and become very popular with the 2wd, 2 litres factory supported kit-cars, was banned, shortly after Mr. Richard took WRC promotion control (through ISC).
So, in the mid 00’s WRC was an agonizing series (to get even worse a French driver become insolently unbeatable) with little or no attention from FIA, manufacturers, media and only hardcore fans continue to follow it.
Profiting from this poor WRC state, Eurosport, that was already promoting WTCC, proposed the IRC to the FIA, in order to establish a sort of second level for international rally, allegedly not address to manufacturers (at the beginning there were only drivers titles).
Surprising FIA accept it, and Eurosport made an extraordinary job, promoting this series from zero to become a WRC rival, basing it in the more simple and affordable S2000 category (that was born to become a challenge to Gr.N in national and international series).
Spreading to an intercontinental status and attracting factory supported teams with the attribution of manus titles, IRC become a rally marvel and manage to overpass WRC in a lot of aspects. Even the prestigious Monte Carlo rally preferred to enter the series instead of continuing in a defunct WRC.
In the late 00’s, when Mr. Todt took the FIA leadership he had a dilemma: which world rally series to support – IRC or WRC; simply because there was only room for one of them.
Maybe because Mr. Todt career was heavily linked to the classic WRC rallies, maybe because he was pressured from the manus represented at the FIA WRC commission, or for any other reason, one thing become clear: WRC should prevail.
In a short time Mr. Todt managed to implement the new WRC1.6T category, not so expensive and technically easier and tried to restore a more genuine WRC, with back to roots events. Mini follow the already committed Citroen and Ford and then there was a fortunate break: the VW board was convinced to get into WRC, after the Dakar programme.
Meanwhile, maybe by VW pressure, Eurosport wasn’t chose to replace ISC/NO as WRC promoter (perhaps the major injustice in this entire story), so definitely there’s was a political move to put IRC in stagnation mode, firstly by ending S2000 new homologations and then restraining it to Europe.
Even with RedBull/MH having no clue on how to promote WRC, VW involvement brought media attention and global motor companies soon followed: first Hyundai, now Toyota.
In this revitalized WRC, backup categories like WRC2 become once again more attractive, like the recent Skoda participation proves, and only the worldwide events expansion remain to be seen.
Left alone with the IRC brilliant recollections, now what can Eurosport do for ERC future?
The strongest IRC years were indeed before WRC started their own S2000 championship. 2011 was the last great year IMO.
Hmmm. where to begin....
1) IRC was dying on its feet before it was abandoned
2) IRC was never an FIA-sanctioned series. It was run under license from the Swiss ASN. Yes, it was run under FIA regs and requirements, but it was a commercial series - not controlled by FIA.
3) Eurosport have shown through their efforts on WTCC (reduced manufacturers) and ERC (what a shambles) that they SHOULDN'T have been chosen to run WRC. On what basis should they have been?!
4) Current WRC Promoter has done what everyone wanted: provided a worldwide promotional platform for manufacturers to want to be involved. Lots of Live TV, alleged plans to expand worldwide (China, Japan again, Brazil), and more events wanting to be part of the championship than there are slots. You can't say that about ERC!
peugeot only developed the car, and thats all as far as i know. local importers payed for the irc-programs, not peugeot itself.
perhaps some teams got some support from the factory, but they never became factory-teams.
and be honest. of all the s2000 cars, only the punto, the fabia, the 207 and the fiesta where build by (semi-)manufacturers. the corsa, polo and the mg where private projects. thats 4 manufacturers.
now with r5 we have already 3, a 4th coming soon, and perhaps 2 more.
s2000 was qua manufacturers not the great success people want to believe, and r5 is not the big setback.
Let's not go semantics too much. Peugeot Espagna in 2007 and after that Kronos were both technically and financially heavily supported by Peugeot and they were official teams of the brand in the IRC and as such they shall be considered factory teams (the factory payed them for their services). They had factory engineers, factory drivers (those had often contracts signed with Peugeot directly). For Your information now even their successor Saintéloc (Peugeot Academy) is registered as factory team and therefore is not eligible for privateer points. Such clear definition didn't exist in the IRC as rules were different but Kronos few years back definitely wasn't less "factory" then Saintéloc now. Moreover Peugeot used cars in full factory colors in high-profile events with Bouffier, Sarrazin or Ogier behind the wheel (Ypres, Monte Carlo, Sardinia, Barum, Sanremo etc.).
S2000 was a great success as it was the rally formula with largest ever production numbers with some 400 cars despite being stopped by the FIA at the popularity peak (at the end of 2010 season). We can only speculate how it would grow if FIA let it continue. If it was a misconception or a deliberate attempt to bring down the IRC I don't know but I'm sure it damaged rallying a sport.