Photo: WTCC Media

WTCC 2008 calendar is approved

The World Touring Car Championship calendar for 2008 has been confirmed and approved. The FIA World Motor Sport Council approved the draft for the calendar yesterday in Paris. The calendar includes eleven races in eleven countries. As this year the season starts in Brazil, Curitiba, and ends in Macau.

The major news for the new calendar is that Japan gets a round. The Okayama track, located between Hroshima and Osaka on the Honshu island, will host the race. This track previously has hosted Formula One. In 1994 and 1995 the track was host to the Formula One Pacific Grand Prix.

Rumor has it that the move to Japan is to secure a yet unknown Japanese manufacturer entering the championship in 2009. The list for possible and rumored manufacturers entering the WTCC from Japan is long – Mazda, Honda and Toyota/Lexus.

2008 FIA WTCC CALENDAR

02 March BRAZIL Curitiba
18 May SPAIN Valencia
01 June FRANCE Pau
15 June CZECH REPUBLIC Brno
06 July PORTUGAL Estoril
27 July GREAT BRITAIN Brands Hatch
31 August GERMANY Oschersleben
21 September SWEDEN Anderstorp *
05 October ITALY Monza
26 October JAPAN Okayama
16 November MACAU Macau

* subject to the ASN confirmation and the FIA homologation of the circuit