Arne Dirks, managing director of Rallycross Promoter GmbH, poses for a photo during an exclusive interview with China Daily in Hong Kong on March 22, 2023. (EDMOND TANG / CHINA DAILY)

The diverse, vibrant and fast-paced city of Hong Kong is an ideal stage on which to demonstrate the charms of grand sports events, and where worldwide audiences — especially the youth — can develop an interest in motorsports, a seasoned motorsports promoter said after the city won its bid to host the 2023 FIA World Rallycross Championship's season finale in November.

This will be the first time for Hong Kong to host the event, which will be staged in the city for three consecutive years. The finale will also mark the international event’s debut in East Asia and will possibly take it to mainland cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area in future.    

Arne Dirks, managing director of the Rallycross Promoter GmbH, which is responsible for promoting the racing event, said that Hong Kong is a perfect location for promoting rallycross, an exciting motorsport in which drivers race on a closed circuit with a mixed-surface.

Arne Dirks, managing director of the Rallycross Promoter GmbH, which is responsible for promoting the 2023 FIA World Rallycross Championship, said that Hong Kong is a perfect location for promoting rallycross, an exciting motorsport in which drivers race on a closed circuit with a mixed-surface

In an exclusive interview with China Daily on Wednesday, the senior motorsports advocator said a round of rallycross races usually takes only three to four minutes. "Our sport is full of wheel to wheel action, and cars can accelerate from zero to 100 kilometers per hour in 1.8 seconds," Dirks said, adding that he believes the short but breathtaking sprint race will suit the tastes of an audience living in a city full of passion and vitality.

Hong Kong will hold the rallycross finale on Nov 11 and 12, and witness the coronation of the annual champion. The racecourse, as the event's first-ever circuit in a downtown area, will be built at the Central Harbourfront Event Space, located next to Victoria Harbour. It will be about 1 kilometer long, with a half-mud, half-tarmac surface.

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Originating in 2014, the annual rallycross championship features a series of 10 to 12 events per season, with competitions being held in different cities across Europe, as well as locations in Turkiye, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates. This year, the championship series will kick off in Portugal, and then move to Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Germany and South Africa before being curtained in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

The two-day competition in Hong Kong this year also demonstrates the International Automobile Federation's (FIA) endeavor to promote greener motorsports. The top regulator of global racing events, FIA is planning to turn the World Rallycross Championship into an event without fuel cars. Hong Kong's finale will be the second all-electric competition in the series' history.

Arne Dirks, managing director of Rallycross Promoter GmbH, poses for a photo during an exclusive interview with China Daily in Hong Kong on March 22, 2023. (EDMOND TANG / CHINA DAILY)

Dirks said he believes Hong Kong's finale will be very appealing to electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers. “There are a lot of EV manufacturers in the Asia-Pacific region, especially in the Chinese mainland,” Dirks said, "and we can really showcase what an electric car can do."

The manager is also eyeing the mainland, especially the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, as a potential market for the sport. "Let's start with Hong Kong as the first iconic event," he said, "but we are also interested in exploring possibilities and opportunities in the mainland."

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Dirks said he is open to sharing information or undertaking joint promotions with Macao Grand Prix, another renowned world-class racing event. "We have different products, but we share the same goal to grow motorsport," the manager said.