The FIA, in agreement with promoter KSO, has decided to cancel as a case of Force Majeure the second race meeting of the 2010 FIA World Touring Car Championship scheduled to take place in Puebla, Mexico, on April 11th.
The FIA’s decision is based on security reports from the region and follows close consultation and guidance from OMDAI, the Mexican National Sporting Authority.
About the possibility to replace the Mexican event, KSO general manager Marcello Lotti stated: "No decision has yet been taken. We will think about it, evaluate the different opportunities and decide before the next meeting in Marrakech. As a matter of fact we are not looking for a replacement on the same date of Puebla, because there would not be enough time to organise the event properly with an appropriate promotional campaign. If there is a replacement, this will take place in the gap between Valencia and Okayama and, therefore, would be somewhere on the way to Japan. However we could very well stay with eleven events."
The championship will resume with rounds 5 and 6 at Marrakech, Morocco, on May 2nd.
The FIA WTCC will not visit Puebla this year because of security issues
WTCC SIGNS BROADCASTING DEAL WITH RTL IN GERMANY
The FIA World Touring Car Championship is delighted to announce an important deal with leading German commercial channel RTL, covering the broadcasting of the 2010 season.
RTL will show a 10-minute highlights programme of WTCC races before the broadcast of F1 qualifying sessions, within a captive motorsport fan audience. The first programme will be aired on March 13th alongside the F1 season opener in Barhain.
In addition, WTCC will also receive coverage on RTL multimedia platform, including editorial features on the RTL website and in the news reports.
Marcello Lotti, General Manager of KSO, the promoter of the WTCC, commented: "This deal with RTL marks an important strategic development for us. Getting our World Championship onto terrestrial TV in the leading automotive market in Europe is a massive boost for everyone involved and will bring the WTCC to a major new audience. For the championship, sponsors and teams, this is great news that will further grow the brand and increase interest levels in Germany".
Manfred Loppe, head of sports, RTL said: "We are happy to air WTCC, the premier world touring car competition in our programmes and to offer our audience an additional attractive motorsport series around our Formula 1 broadcast."
Over the past five years, the WTCC has enjoyed a steady audience growth, consolidating its FIA World Championship status as well as increasing its popularity worldwide.
In 2009, the WTCC drew record viewing figures with a cumulative global audience of 430 million different viewers (+23% over 2008) and increased its worldwide distribution to more than 160 countries across 75 TV networks.