Other Disciplines

Regional Rallies

FIA Regional Rallying continued to go from strength to strength in 2023 with another successful year of competition.

The European Championship was won by Hyundai crew Hayden Paddon and John Kennard. After winning the opening round in Fafe (Portugal), the New Zealanders collected four consecutive second places and a third place finish to take the title.

Meanwhile, the amateur FIA European Rally Trophy was won by René Dohnal and Roman Svec, who took advantage of the new sporting formula to take the overall win in their ‘small’ Peugeot 208 Rally4.

In the FIA Middle East Rally Championship, Nasser Al-Attiyah and Mathieu Baumel shared the title with Abdullah Al-Rawahi and Ata Al-Hmoud, who were tied at the end of the five rounds. Meanwhile, in Africa, Patel Karan and Tauseef Khan saw off the challenger of Yasin Nasser and Ali Katumba to take their first FIA African Rally Championship title.

On the American continent, Fabrizio Zaldivar and Marcelo Der Ohannesian secured the CODASUR Championship title while the NACAM title was taken by the pairing of Ricardo Cordero Jr and Marco Hernandez. Finally, the FIA Asia-Pacific Rally Championship was won by Rifat Sungkar and Ben Searcy.

FIA Rally Star 

Originally launched in 2021, the FIA Rally Star programme is designed to identify and train young talent with a view to taking them all the way to the World Rally Championship. The 2023 event saw Peru’s José ‘Abito’ Caparo selected as winner of the American final, alongside compatriot Annia Cilloniz, who won the women’s final. They joined Romet Jurgenson (Estonia), Abdullah Al-Tawqi (Oman), Max Smart (South Africa) and Taylor Gill (Australia) who had already been selected in 2022.

All six drivers attended a two-week training camp in Sardinia that covered physical and mental preparation, mechanical and engineering courses, media training, as well as driving Ford Fiesta Rally3 cars. The six then competed in six European rallies: San Marino, Weiz (Austria), Nova Gorica (Slovenia), Saaremaa (Estonia), Catalunya (Spain) and Lausitz (Germany).

Following a comprehensive evaluation of their performance and potential, four have been selected to move up to the FIA Junior WRC in 2024: Romet Jurgenson, Taylor Gill, José Caparo and Max Smart.

Drifting

In 2023, the FIA Intercontinental Drifting Cup (IDC) was cancelled for the second year running. This follows the suspension of the promoter’s contract after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

With the absence of the FIA IDC, the Commission instead focused on parallel projects which can support ASNs, from the grassroots up to the pro levels of the discipline.

Safety 

The Drifting Commission has continued to focus on safety over the course of 2023.

At the start of the year, the Drifting, Safety and Circuits Commissions approved the Drifting Layout Guidelines, which provide a framework for the design of safe Drifting courses. They also signed off on a new Noise Measuring Method which had been developed by the Technical Working Group with the goal of minimising noise pollution complaints. The Commission also approved a revised version the DC1 Technical Regulations and began working on technical regulations for DC3, which will provide a framework for road legal Drifting cars that will support the development of Grassroot Drifting.

Training

The FIA Training Programme for Drifting Judges was first launched in 2022 – and following its success, the project was extended into 2023. The Georgia Automobile Sports Federation hosted a self-funded training session as part of the programme, gathering 27 participants from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey for the event in May.

The Commission also supported learning through an expanded training portfolio, with new FIA Drifting Judges eLearning Modules, made freely available to ASNs in English, Spanish and French. 271 users enrolled in the e-course in 2023.

Expansion 

In line with the Commission’s aim of developing drifting worldwide, the Sporting and Technical working groups developed a standardised reporting system for local series. The reporting system allows Members to objectively assess their local series, and find areas for improvement, guidance and support.

The year ended with the formal termination of the existing IDC promotion contract and the launch of an invitation to tender. The results of this call for tenders will steer the direction of the Commission’s 2024 activities.

Truck Racing

This year’s Goodyear FIA European Truck Racing Championship took place across eight rounds – with Poland’s Poznań joining the calendar for the first time.

As in 2022, the championship was dominated by Hungary’s Norbert Kiss who secured his fifth series crown after 16 pole positions and 22 wins from 32 races. He competed against 12 other full-season entries (with a total of 15 trucks competing at popular events in Poznań, Nürburgring, Most and Jarama.)

The championship once again proved popular with fans. 350,000 spectators attended in person, and 23.5 million were reached through social media channels. Many more fans watched live terrestrial TV coverage of the championships.

Sustainability

2023 was a key year for sustainability in truck racing.

For the first time, the Goodyear FIA ETRC technical regulations permitted both electric and hybrid technologies to compete alongside the current generation of race trucks with combustion engines. As a result, the world’s first electric racing truck was revealed at the Nürburgring event, built by multiple ETRC title winner Jochen Hahn. 

The FIA also organised a workshop in Paris focused on hydrogen technology in motor sport.

Young Drivers Initiative

This year, the Championship also introduced the European Young Driver’s title. Open to drivers under the age of 30, the initiative aimed to support drivers to translate their passion for truck racing into a professional career. Young truck racing drivers from the ETRC, and from national truck racing competitions in France and Spain, competed. The inaugural title was won by José Eduardo Rodrigues of Portugal. 

Drag Racing

The 2023 season of the FIA European Drag Racing Championship has seen its calendar return to normal with a five-round programme, a first since 2019. Despite the increasing costs of participation and the ongoing impact of Covid-19, the discipline enjoyed impressive participation figures – with 59 drivers representing 12 different countries across the course of the season.

Competition was high throughout the season, and several titles remained undecided up until the very last race. Ultimately, however, it was Ida Zetterström, Linn Fløysvik, Jan Ericsson and Michael Malmgren who were crowned European Champions in Top Fuel, Top Methanol, Pro Modified and Pro Stock, respectively.

Female drivers continued to excel in the discipline. While en route to her debut Top Fuel title, Ida Zetterström also broke two European records, reaching a record speed of 516 km/h and covering the 1000ft English drag strip in 3.773 seconds E.T. In Top Methanol, Linn Fløysvik became the first ever woman to clinch the European title, after just two full seasons in the class.

Regulatory development

Several new safety initiatives were introduced this year. These included the FIA Impact Data Recorder in 2023, a low-cost solution which is fitted in a vehicle’s cockpit to accurately measure vehicle incident impact data. The FIA Safety Department also introduced a traction measuring device (KEG) to be used on drag strips. Data from the device has helped competitors to enhance their on-track performance safely. It will also be used to define a required minimum traction standard for the EDRC from 2024 onwards.

At the end of the year, the revised SFI Specifications list was approved. These new specifications are the result of thorough research and development from the Technical Working Group. They will help to reduce additional costs for Competitors, making it easier to complete the full EDRC season without jeopardising Driver and Vehicle Safety.

Scrutineering

Off track, the FIA and the Saudi Arabia Motorsport Federation (SAMF) hosted the second FIA Drag Racing Scrutineers Training. The training aims to ensure that established safety and technical regulations are followed consistently throughout the Middle East. Over 33 scrutineers from SAMF, the Oman Automobile Association, the Kuwait International Automobile Club and the Bahrain Motor Federation completed the SAMF-funded training.

Off Road Commission

FIA European Rallycross Championship 

A total of 35 drivers entered the European Rallycross Championship. At the end of a tightly contested campaign, Finland’s Anton Marklund took the title, just six points ahead of Latvia’s Jānis Baumanis.

In RX2e, a total of 15 drivers took part. It was a clean sweep for Sweden, with Nils Andersson claiming victory ahead of his compatriots Isak Sjokvist and Michaela Ahlin-Kottulinsky.

Meanwhile, in the RX3 class, 25 drivers took part over five rounds. Poland’s Damian Litwinowicz claimed the title, just four points clear of Norway’s Espen Isaksætre. 

FIA European Autocross

A strong European Autocross Championship season saw 52 drivers score points across the 10 rounds of the SuperBuggy class. But it was Czech driver Petr Nikodem who took the title ahead of French rival Vincent Mercier.  

In the Buggy 1600 class, 51 drivers scored points across the 10-event series. Another Czech driver, Jakob Novotny, claimed victory.

19 drivers scored points in the Junior Buggy class. Arnost Florian made it a hat-trick of individual class wins for the Czech Republic as he beat the Netherlands’ Nathan Ottink to the overall crown.

In the end, the only title that the Czech contingent couldn’t claim was the Nations Cup. Instead, victory went to France, with the Czech Republic in second and the Netherlands in third.  

Cross Car

The FIA European Cross Car Championship saw strong growth in 2023 with a 15% increase in the number of registered drivers. More and more chassis manufacturers chose to take part in the championship.

There was a similarly strong driver turnout. 48 drivers scored points across the seven-round series. Spain’s Ivan Pina Chinchilla was the overall victor ahead of Frenchmen, David Meat and Valentin Comte.

In the Cross Car Academy series, 14 drivers under the age of 16 took part in the five-round series. Belgian driver Emilien Allart won. In 2024, the series will become the Cross Car Junior series, open to all chassis manufacturers. It is expected to provide strong support at five rounds of the Autocross calendar. 

FIA Hill Climb Commission

After a successful 2022, Hill Climb continued its ascent in 2023. The discipline continued to enjoy high spectator and competitor figures across both Championships and the International Cup (EHCC, IHCC and HHCC).  

At the end of the 10 rounds of the 2023 FIA European Hill-Climb Championship, the Italian Christian Merli (Osella FA30) claimed his fifth Championship victory, taking ten victories in ten Category 2 races. In Category 1, the title went to North Macedonian Igor Stefanowski (Hyundai i30 N TCR).    

Both drivers now join the list of legendary Hill-Climb Champions, alongside greats like Wolfgang Graf von Trips, Edgar Barth and Ludovico Scarfiotti. 

Technical Working Groups 

In 2023, the Hill-Climbing Commission has changed from an ad hoc organisation to a much more sophisticated and established team. The Commission is now served by technical personnel, and technical working groups for each category. 

These technical working groups align and gather competitor and manufacturer feedback, develop new regulations, and handle conversations around the introduction of future technologies in the Championships. 

Technical regulations 

 In 2023, the Commission created and applied a host of dedicated new technical regulations. These new regulations served to improve performance and safety across the discipline’s Championships and International Cup. 

Notably, the Commission: 

• Set performance targets for car power and weight ratio through Articles 258-1 (Road Cars) and 258-2 (Prototypes) of Appendix J. These new targets will help to ensure safety through performance management. They were validated in WMSC. 
• Established a safety roadmap for the coming four years through Article 258-2. 

Over the coming years, the Commission will also continue to address issues such as seat upgrades (Categories 1 and 2) and roll structure unification of requirements in Category 1. 

In addition to the above technical regulations, the Commission have also helped to organise and professionalise the Championship further, through: 

• The expanded use of Performance Factor through the FIA platform   
• New technical working groups for categories.  
• Close partnerships with the International Hill Climb Cup Working Group 

  In addition to setting new regulations, the FIA also continued to push for cars to meet existing regulatory standards. In particular, the Commission encouraged chassis conformity across Category 2 cars. Osella, for example, had to modify around 50 chassis to bring them up to the original FIA test standard.   

Performance Factor 

Performance Factor (PF) is a way of categorising car performance, based on racing weight, engine, aerodynamics, drivetrain and chassis.  

First introduced in Hill Climb in 2022, PF helps to make the discipline more inclusive by ensuring that cars with similar capabilities can race against each other within one of five different groups.

Each competing car is required to register with Performance Factor and attain a PFID. In 2023, 4,300 PFIDs were created (compared to 4,500 in 2022). This year, Category 2 teams trialled the website, while Category 1 teams continued to use it.

This year, Category 2 teams trialled the website, while Category 1 teams continued to use it.  

There is good understanding of the benefits of Performance Factors among competitors and ASNs alike. Many of the main competitors follow the Championship in all five groups, and use PFIDs as a way to help them understand how to maximise performance in specific categories. Likewise, numerous ASNs have adopted the system and demonstrate good understanding of its use.  

ASNs using the PF Classification 2023

FIA Land Speed Records Commission

A subdued recovery – Bolivia and Italy

Two Land Speed Record (LSR) events were scheduled at Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia with the administrative support of the FIA Land Speed Records Commission:

• Speed Trials Bolivia, a joint FIA-FIM event organised by Mike Akatiff on 15-21 August
• Reg Cook’s attempt on 11-17 September

Neither of the two competitors who had entered Mike Akatiff’s event was able to compete as they both experienced engine failure.

Unfortunately, Reg Cook also had to cancel his attempt, due to lack of time to prepare his vehicles. He hopes to return in 2024.

On 30 September, 1 October and 3 October, returning FIA World Land Speed Record holder Gianmaria Aghem set 11 world records driving a Blizz Primatist Hybrid at Nardo Technical Centre (Italy). He set initial records on 30 September and beat them again on 3 October. The records were set across the following categories: Category A (Automobile) – Group XI (Hybrid engine) – Class 1 (up to and including 500 kg) and Class 2 (over 500 kg and up to and including 1,000 kg) over the following distances and times with standing start: 10 miles, 100 kilometres, 100 miles and 1 hour.

A bereaved community

Mr Aghem passed away on 23 November, a few weeks after setting these records.

Almost a month earlier, on 26 October, the Land Speed Records Community suffered the loss of another long-standing member of the land speed community: Mike Cook, creator and organiser of the FIA-FIM Bonneville Shootout.

Appendix D Regulations: Safety updates and electrified vehicle Land Speed Record classes

At the December meeting of the World Motor Sport Council, the LSR Commission saw its updated regulations on braking parachutes approved.

The Commission also pursued work on a dedicated class structure for electrified vehicles this year. Rather than adapting existing classifications from other records organisations, the Commission explored the option of relying on Performance Factor (PF) as a means for classification.

FIA Electric and New Energy Championships Commission

The ENEC Commission has a key role to play in the championships powered with new energies here at the FIA. The Commission supports sustainable championships to connect with stakeholders, share knowledge, establish common protocols, and address challenges linked to these technologies.

At the moment, the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship and the Bridgestone ecoRally Cup are the two major Championships under the ENEC umbrella but other FIA Championships such as World Rallycross, and recognised International Series like Extreme E also regularly engage in Commission meetings.

In 2023, the ENECC has worked closely with the FIA Technical and Safety Department to develop regulations and address common challenges faced by ASNs and Promoters. They have also built strong partnerships with the FIA Environment and Sustainability Commission and other stakeholders, to promote knowledge sharing and capability building. The Commission has invited, amongst many others, the Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) to share their EV drivers research report, Bridgestone to share future new energy vehicle plan and programme, and FIA Foundation to share relative new energy research programmes amongst many others.

Bridgestone FIA ecoRally Cup

The FIA Bridgestone EcoRally Cup is a sustainable racing event, which brings together automotive industry leaders, innovative technologies, and a commitment to sustainability. The event aims to use the power and popularity of green racing to inspire positive change in the automotive sector.

Last year, the FIA hosted nine ecoRally events, with a tenth (eRallye du Chablais in Switzerland) cancelled due to number of entries below the minimum requirement fixed by the regulations. The events welcomed a total of 95 participants from 13 European countries.

The success of the Championship has shown sponsors and stakeholders the value of getting involved. The ENECC has nurtured these relationships, and in 2023, it has committed significant resources to developing a technical solution which can support as many brands and models as possible.

ENECC has been similarly committed to driving ASN engagement. Interest from organisers and ASNs/ACNs around the world (such as Brazil, Japan, China, Australia, Belgium, France, Luxemburg, etc.) has grown steadily. Some of them are looking to develop ecoRally on the national level, whilst others want to be part of the FIA Cup. The Commission promoted the championship during the FIA Conference week in Córdoba, introducing and presenting it during a special webinar and also hosting a successful demo event, in collaboration with the FIA Marketing team.

These engagement efforts have been highly successful, and in 2024, the calendar has been expanded to include 12 races across ten different countries.

FIA Historic Motor Sport Commission

FIA European Historic Rally Championship 

A total of 59 crews entered the 2023 FIA European Historic Rally Championship. The Championship was held across nine rallies in eight countries.

In Category 1, Britain’s Ernie and Karen Graham took the win in their Ford Escort Mk1 Twincam, while long-time historic competitors Valter Christian Jensen and Erik Pedersen seized victory with their Ford Escort RS1800 in Category 2.

Category 3 was dominated by multiple champions Karl Wagner and Gerda Zauner in their Porsche 911, while Category 4 was won by Italian crew “Lucky” and Fabrizia Pons in their Lancia Delta Integrale.

More than 10 teams competed for the FIA EHRC Teams Trophy, with Italy’s Team eventually claiming victory.

FIA Historic Formula 3 European Cup 

The FIA Historic Formula 3 European Cup for cars built and raced between 1971 and 1984 (inclusive) took place over Easter weekend 2023 at Circuit Paul Ricard in the south of France. The event is now part of the FIA Historic Formula 3 European Cup, organised by HVM Racing and supported by the Fédération Française du Sport Automobile (FFSA). 34 entrants of eight different nationalities competed, including two female drivers.

At the end of the two races, France’s Frédéric Rouvier won the Cup in Category 1, just 1.1 seconds ahead of Italy’s Davide Leone. Dutch driver Patrick Andriessen completed the podium and took the Cup in Category 2.

FIA Historic Hill Climb Championship

The 2023 edition of the FIA Historic Hill Climb Championship was scheduled to take place across eight events but safety concerns led the Slovenian ASN to cancel the GHD Lucine event.

Despite the cancellation, the 2023 calendar still marked an increase from 2022 (five events).

While the Commission did not meet in 2023, all necessary decisions were taken via e-vote. Meetings will resume at the start of 2024.

FIA Historic Technical Working Group

The Historic Technical Working Group met three times during 2023 to undertake its regular function of providing clarification on technical queries from ASNs, and providing approvals for substitute components where originals have become unavailable. The Group, also drew up a draft set of additional regulations for the inclusion of vehicles from 1991 to 2000. The existing Appendix K regulations were also reviewed, with the objective of providing better clarity, eliminating repetition and removing guidance articles with no regulatory function.

FIA Vehicle Compliance Sub-Commission

The FIA Vehicle Compliance Sub-Commission is responsible for the review of Historic Technical Passports for the FIA. With the assistance of the FIA Technical Department, the Sub-Commission reviewed a total of 953 valid documents allowing historic cars to compete around the world. Sub-Commission specialists also worked with FIA Administration to support efforts to develop new regulation on vehicles from 1991-2000.