Motorsport can’t just go the way of electrification! Robert Reid finds good reasons for this. Do you agree with him?

Problems with sustainability or pollution of the planet. These are things that are currently plaguing not only motorsport, but the automotive industry in general. In an interview with Autosport, Robert Reid gives several reasons why electrification is not the only way to go. Do you agree with his assertion?

Who is Robert Reid anyway? He’s a former professional WRC co-driver. In fact, he was co-pilot for Richard Burns in 2001, the year he won the championship with his Subaru.

Since his retirement, he has served on several FIA committees, including the safety committee. He spent several years as a director of the British Motor Sport Association and also worked as a WRC commentator. In three weeks’ time he will even be standing in the FIA election for the role of Deputy President for Sport.

In an interview with the Autosport website, he commented on whether motorsport should go down the route of electrification. Better said, whether this is really the right direction motorsport should take in the future. It should be noted that in recent years this question has been addressed more and more vehemently.

Various environmental factors are coming into play. But Reid also argues that motorsport should still be bold in pushing its ideas and serve as a kind of technology incubator to help get the world on the right track.

“When we talk to different teams around the world, they all tell us: ‘Don’t let motorsport go EV-only because we’re still going to be using internal combustion engines for the next 20 years,'” Reid explained in an interview with Autosport.

“The infrastructure just isn’t at such a good level in every country that we can choose one single path. So we have to come up with a solution that meets everyone’s needs. We have a lot of options, a lot of opportunities, we can come up with several solutions,” he realises.

“We have to realise that motorsport will always be more expensive than football. We have to work to reduce costs as much as possible. This is also important in terms of the double motorsport campaign, which, although it may seem overly ambitious, I think there is a huge opportunity here,” he adds.

He also adds that motorsport needs to respond to things such as consumer habits, changing attitudes towards diversity and, not least, the ever-present environmental and sustainability concerns.

He concludes by saying that he sees huge potential in motorsport, especially when combined with providing solutions based on environmental sustainability.

Indeed, it will now be a very important factor to complete the development phase and make sure that there are different pathways that can meet the targets that are set. It could be said that the issue of electrification has never been such an important part of progress.

But is it really the only right way?

Sources: WRC, FIA, Autosport