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Poland leads race as World Rally Championship plans new 2014 event

Next year's World Rally Championship will include one completely new round, according to FIA rally director Jarmo Mahonen

Mahonen confirmed to AUTOSPORT that one of the candidate rallies running this season will be included on the 2014 WRC calendar expected in coming weeks.

While Mahonen would not be drawn on the specifics of the calendar and refused to confirm a drop from 13 to 12 rounds for next season, he did say a new event would feature.

Brazil, China and Poland are believed to be the three countries running candidates this season and speculation suggests that Poland is looking increasingly likely to make the grade.

Poland has been included twice before (in 1973 and 2009), with the Mikko Hirvonen-won event of four years ago one of that season's highlights.

There is an increased appetite for rallying in Poland folllowing Robert Kubica's switch to the WRC with Citroen.

AUTOSPORT opinion: Kubica's explosive arrival in rallying

This year's Rally Poland runs as a round of the European Rally Championship in September.

Brazil and China are both key markets, however, and the WRC is expected to be running in both countries in the near future.

Mahonen said: "I don't want rallies coming with the asterix [meaning provisional]. That is why we decided to postpone the original announcement.

"We want the calendar to be set and I expect one of the candidate rallies to be included."

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