The 2014 World Rally Championship-3 was the second season of the World Rally Championship-3, an auto racing championship recognised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, running in support of the World Rally Championship. It was created when the Group R class of rally car was introduced in 2013.
Sébastien Chardonnet started as the defending champion. However, he did not defend his title as he competed in the WRC-2 championship instead.
The championship was won by Stéphane Lefebvre. Alastair Fisher finished the championship second with Martin Koči third.
Unlike its predecessor – the Production Car World Rally Championship – the World Rally Championship-3 did not have a fixed calendar. Instead, teams and drivers competing in the series were free to contest any of thirteen rallies that formed the 2014 World Rally Championship. They had to nominate up to six events to score points in, and their best five results from these six events counted towards their final championship points score. The World Rally Championship was open to two-wheel drive cars complying with R1, R2 and R3 regulations.
Rally Australia and Rally New Zealand abandoned the event-sharing arrangement established in 2008 that saw each event host a round of the championship every other year. After hosting an event in 2013, Rally Australia remained on the calendar throughout 2014 and 2015 before the arrangement is due to be renegotiated.
The Rallye Monte Carlo relocated its base from Valence in the French province of Rhône-Alpes to the town of Gap in the neighbouring province of Hautes-Alpes.
The 2014 calendar saw the Rally of Poland return to the championship for the first time since 2009. The event also crossed the border into Lithuania for one day of competition. Its inclusion came at the expense of the Acropolis Rally, which was removed after struggling with its financial obligations to the championship. The Acropolis Rally later moved to the European Rally Championship for the 2014 season. The rallies of Brazil and China had also been considered for inclusion on the WRC calendar before the FIA approved of the Rally of Poland.
Notes
^1 — The Monte Carlo Rally was shortened when a competitor stopped on Stage 14, blocking traffic and forcing organisers to abandon the stage.
All competitors registered in the Championships–WRC, WRC-2, WRC-3 and the Junior WRC—were obliged to use a colour-coded windscreen sticker to distinguish its category.
Drivers were no longer assigned permanent numbers, except upon request.
All competitors registered for the Junior WRC were registered for scoring points in the World Rally Championship-3.
