FIA announces new technical guidelines for grassroots touring car racing

The FIA has announced new technical guidelines which are meant for “grassroots motorsport in developing countries”.

“The FIA is dedicated to doubling motor sport participation and enhancing global accessibility, and this vision begins with a solid foundation at the grassroots level, where safety is essential,” said Mohammed Ben Sulayem, president of the FIA.

“By offering these blueprints to our Member Clubs, we can directly empower them to grow and strengthen their domestic entry-level touring car competitions.”

The new guidelines are primarily focused on establishing essential safety standards, and an affordable level of racing.

“Our role as the FIA, amongst other things, is to share expertise and know-how with our Member Clubs and therefore raise the standards at grassroots and club-level racing,” added FIA Touring Car Commission chairman, Alan Gow.

“At the same time, we recognise the fact that grassroots touring car racing must be accessible and adaptable to local conditions. By focusing on safety, these guidelines give the FIA Member Clubs the freedom to shape their championships while maintaining key safety standards.

“Even countries with established motor sport, like the UK, should benefit. After the TC Lite ruleset release last year, this is another step towards making touring car racing more popular and more accessible than ever before.”

The guidelines does not specify restrictions on type of touring cars, power or other performance specifications, but rather safety cage, brakes, windows, driver safety equipment and more.

This level of touring car racing is, according to the FIA, meant to be a first step into touring car racing and on a lower level than TC Lite (which was announced by FIA last year) or TCR for example.

One example brought up by the FIA is the Australian Hyundai Excel one-make series.

“Establishing clear safety standards for entry-level touring car racing is essential. It helps to ensure driver well-being while providing ASNs with a flexible framework to adapt to local markets, fostering growth in grassroots racing,” said Andrew Fraser, President of Motorsport Australia.

“Safety is the number one priority for Motorsport Australia and clearly defining these standards is key to protecting the motor sport community, while also ensuring consistency and fairness across the sport,” said Sunil Vohra, CEO of the club.

The complete guidelines are available here.