Richards: WRC isn't F1's competitor

That is the view of WRC boss David Richards, who has reiterated his belief that rallying should work on highlighting its differences to Grand Prix racing, rather than taking it on head to head.

Speaking at last night's annual Guild of Motoring Writers dinner, Richards said: "Our task is not to beat F1, but to be different from F1. There are lessons to learn from Grand Prix racing but we have to be different and that is the key challenge."

Richards believes the diversity of the 14 rounds that make up the WRC are its greatest strength. "Look at F1, you can't really tell the difference between a corner at Silverstone or Monza - or between a football pitch or tennis court," he said. "Rallying has 14 events, with 14 different backgrounds, nature and climate. We won't change that but we will standardise the format."

Live television coverage is seen as the key to the WRC's future growth in popularity. On Monday, Channel 4 will announce its plans for next year's coverage, when it takes over the British broadcasting rights to the sport.

Meanwhile, WRC's Sony PlayStation 2 game is launched today.