2022 Rally Raid World Championship rounds three and four, the Rallye du Maroc and Andalucia Rally, will both now run just 12 days apart in October following date changes.

Following the postponement of the Andalucia Rally from its previous summer date due to the dry conditions in the region and associated fire risk, the event organisers, the FIA, the FIM and A.S.O. have set new dates in October for the next rounds of the FIA-FIM World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC).

The Rallye du Maroc now moves forward by a week to October 1-6 to allow the Andalucia Rally to take place in the same month, just two weeks later from October 18-23.

That means 12 days between the events which could be a problem for some teams but in a modern motorsport, world championship events run on consecutive weekends so it seems a little hard to understand any issues being raised.

That said, the FIA, the FIM and the W2RC promoter A.S.O. say they are aware of the challenges brought about by the situation for the competing teams and the consequences in their preparation and organisation.

They have time to prepare though, the change of dates means a large gap between round two, the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge in March and this more intense end to the World Championship season in October (following the cancellation of the Kazakhstan Rally).

It is understood the shuffling also means a change of dates for the RFME and the Todoterreno Cuenca Rally in Spain which will now be held from October 14-15.

More information: www.worldrallyraidchampionship.com