Exclusive: Abu Dhabi to have no World Rally Championship presence in 2012
The Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA) has followed up its decision not to field a team in the 2012 World Rally Championship (WRC) by revealing its five-year association with Ford has also ended.
It means Abu Dhabi will now have no presence in next year’s season after Sport360° exclusively revealed on Thursday that the ADTA would not be fielding both Team Abu Dhabi and the Abu Dhabi Junior Team in 2012.
Yesterday, the Ford factory team announced that the stable would now be called the ‘Ford World Rally Team’ as opposed to ‘Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team’.
They also revealed they had signed a new sponsorship deal with Castrol for 2012-13, and that former world champion Petter Solberg would drive one of its Fiesta RS WRCs in the new season as number two to new team leader Jari-Matti Latvala.
An ADTA spokesperson said: “After extensive consideration and review, Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA) has decided not to continue its involvement in the World Rally Championship (WRC).
“This decision ends the Authority’s five-year WRC association with Ford, one of the series’ most-decorated and longest-serving manufacturers.”
A source disclosed that the five-year contract between Ford and the ADTA actually expires on December 31, 2011, but both parties had mutually agreed to end their partnership with immediate effect in order for Ford to meet the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile’s December 19 registration deadline for manufacturers.
It is understood the ADTA has a contract with WRC promoters North One Sport (NOS) until December 31, 2012, but the Authority is now negotiating for early termination of the deal, which would complete severing all ties with the WRC.
