WRC 2026 to end in Sardinia as Rally Saudi Arabia is cancelled

The 2026 World Rally Championship (WRC) season finale has been cancelled in Saudi Arabia, with Rally Sardinia now set to be the final round. Saudi Arabia was scheduled to host the event from November 11-14, but was among numerous motorsport events in the Middle East facing uncertainty due to the ongoing conflict in the region. Toyota and Hyundai informed the FIA that their team members could not travel to the Middle East due to company-wide travel policies.

M-Sport-Ford had been prepared to attend the rally in Saudi Arabia, as the British foreign office had declared it was safe to travel to Jeddah and the surrounding area. However, the British team sought safety assurances from event organizers, but the foreign office updated its advice advising against travel to parts of Saudi Arabia.

Following weeks of discussions, the FIA and WRC have decided to cancel the event in Saudi Arabia, as the governing body's president Mohammed Ben Sulayem stated: "We have worked closely with our partners in Saudi Arabia, our member club the Saudi Automobile and Motorcycle Federation, WRC Promoter and our championship stakeholders in recent months to explore every possible route that would allow Rally Saudi Arabia to take place as planned.

However, ongoing regional developments mean that the WRC element of Rally Saudi Arabia will not proceed this year." The FIA Middle East Rally Championship event will continue as planned in November, and the WRC will return in 2027. Rally Sardinia, set for October 1-4, will be the season's last round, impacting the title race as Elfyn Evans is now poised to become Britain's first WRC champion since Richard Burns in 2001, leading Toyota team-mate Sami Pajari by 17 points.