The EROAD Australian Rally Championship has unveiled a new set of regulations that will define the sport for 2026 and beyond.
While the majority of sporting and technical regulations will carry over from the current regulations, there are some significant changes that will be brought in from next year, giving all crews more opportunities to score important championship points.
From 2026 onwards the ARC will have:
– Power Stages for all Sprint events and award points for all cup competitions
– G4-spec rally cars eligible for WOLF Cup
– Junior Cup to allow PRC cars
– ARC 2WD Cup open to all 2WD cars, including Classic and club rally cars
– A centralised Classic Cup combining both 2WD and 4WD-spec cars
– The introduction of a new East Coast Cup made up of three rounds
The new regulations have been set out by the ARC, taking the championship to the next level and beyond.
ARC Championship Director Adrian Coppin was pleased to unveil the new set of ARC regulations.
“We are extremely proud to introduce the new set of regulations for the 2026 EROAD Australian Rally Championship and beyond,” Coppin said.
“We have the aim to make the championship as accessible and open to as many rally crews around the country, so opening up the eligibility will go a long way to appealing to crews of all levels around the country.
“The ARC is committed to growing the sport as best as we can and in creating these new regulations, which saw us seek feedback from all types of our regular competitors.
“With that said, I truly believe these regulations will have a hugely positive impact on the sport and its future and I am excited to get into the 2026 season and continue the new era of the EROAD Australian Rally Championship.”
THE KEY CHANGES
More Power Stages and more points on offer
In the current regulations, every round of the ARC has just one Power Stage where the top five outright crews for the stage are rewarded ever-important bonus points.
From 2026, every sprint round will now have a Power Stage at the end of each heat, increasing the availability of championship bonus points through all rounds.
In addition to the increase of Power Stages per event, points for the top five within each ARC Cup will also be awarded on every Power Stage now, giving crews within each class competition the opportunity to score extra points towards their total point score.
The Power Stage bonus points are separate to the overall event points, meaning crews can receive the bonus points, even if the event does not fall within their best four rounds of the season.
WOLF Cup opens up and cashes in
Formerly known as the WOLF Production Cup and open only to vehicles directly linked to their road-going counterparts with production specifications, such as the Mitsubishi EVO and Subaru WRX, the newly rebranded WOLF Cup has now opened itself up to a new spec of cars – most notably the G4-spec rally car, and WRX Challenge Cars.
A G4 rally car has a turbocharged 2.0-litre engine, runs with a 4WD drivetrain donated from its production based counterparts. The new regulation means that the WOLF Cup will be open to more crews around the country.
Not only has the WOLF Cup introduced more eligible spec vehicles, but it also has increased the overall prize pool across the general season.
In 2026, there will be an overall WOLF Cup prize pool of $10,000 divided amongst the outright top three at season’s end, while each round podium will receive $800 for winner, $500 for second place and $250 for third place.
All 2WD cars eligible for ARC 2WD Cup
The current set of regulations for the 2WD Cup allow only for cars that run as front-wheel drive or rear-wheel drive and are 30 years old or less as of 1 January of the competition year.
That will change from 2026 onwards, with the Cup opening to any car from any era that runs a front-wheel drive or rear-wheel drive, merging both the 2WD Cup and the Classic 2WD Cup together.
That means entries such as the 1993 Honda Civic – CRC of Tony Oates and the 1970 Porsche 911 – Classic C3 of Zach Hedge will be going toe-to-toe against the likes of Tony Sullens in his 2013 Citroen DS3.
Junior Cup increases eligibility
In 2026 the Junior Cup will now allow PRC and WRX Challenge cars to enter in the Cup, giving the opportunity to many juniors around the country who have existing PRC cars at ARC level. This means that the likes of Josh Wiedman eligible to compete in both the WOLF Cup but and the Junior Cup
A centralised Classic Cup
Not only will Oates and Hedge be entered in the new-look ARC 2WD Cup in 2026 and beyond, they will also be able to be cross-entered in a new centralised Classic Cup, which will be made up of all Classic 4WD and 2WD entries.
Right now, both Cups are run separate and must comply with the Group 3C – Production Rally Cars (PRC) regulations or Historic Rally Car Regulations, with the 4WD Cup open solely to all-wheel-drive and the 2WD Cup to just two-wheel-drive cars.
Next year, those cars will be all put together to make it one extremely competitive and exciting class.
Introducing the East Coast Cup
The EROAD Australian Rally Championship’s newest competition for 2026 will be a shortened three-round Cup called the East Coast Cup and take place across the rounds on the East Coast.
It will be made up of the season-opening Accent Benchtops Rally Queensland in April, the newly introduced Narooma Rally in June before wrapping up with the final round of the year in November, The Middle of Everywhere Gippsland Rally in Victoria.
The Cup will only be eligible to drivers with an ARC seeding of under 95 and any car outside of the current Rally2 or R5 spec regulations.
