Cars, horses and the Commonwealths

As F1 is on holiday, I thought I’d do a short sports round-up of a few things that have caught my eye. And yes, there is some motorsport this weekend so don’t fret.

Firstly, the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. What a success, especially considering they were organised in under two years after the Australian state of Victoria pulled out due to spiralling costs. It was very scaled back compared to the Games I presented in Glasgow in 2014 for the BBC.

I do fear slightly for the event going forward. Hopefully 2026 was just a blip and more sports will be included again in future. The Commonwealth Games give athletes from countries who might not have much chance of success, or even qualifying for the Olympic Games, the opportunity to perform on a major stage. It also includes sports that aren’t part of the Olympic programme.

People outside the Commonwealth might not always understand the point of the Games, but they really are incredibly important to the athletes who take part and the cities that host them.

This year almost 3,000 athletes from 74 nations and territories came together and produced some brilliant sport. I hope the same can happen on an even greater scale in India in four years’ time.

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This week I’ve been at the Dublin Horse Show, one of the biggest and best equestrian events in the world. It’s even more special because it takes place in the city.

With the World Championships starting next week for dressage and eventing, and the week after for showjumping, many of the top showjumping horses are being saved for Aachen. Even so, Dublin still attracted Olympic champions and riders from around the world for the 100th Aga Khan Trophy (Nations Cup) on Friday and the €1 million Rolex Grand Prix on Sunday. It’s extraordinary times for the sport when, alongside that, the Longines Global Champions Tour in London is also offering €1 million in prize money this weekend.

The sport also has its own behind the scenes series called ‘Faultless’. Every sport is trying to find its own version of ‘Drive to Survive’. Equestrian athletes are fascinating characters and it’s well worth a watch.

Showjumping has big plans going forward with the Premier Jumping League (PJL) starting next year with a prize fund of $300 million. Fourteen events will be held across Europe, America and the Middle East between March and October. There is already a lot of top-class showjumping around the world, but I’m intrigued to see how this fits in and, more importantly, how popular showjumping becomes over the next couple of years. Every sport looks to F1 when it comes to exponential growth. Making it work though, is a very different thing.

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This weekend sees the annual pilgrimage of the British Touring Car Championship to Knockhill in Scotland. The BTCC is a brilliant championship with great, highly competitive support races. There are seven on Saturday and 12 on Sunday. As ever at Knockhill, you’ll need both sun cream and a raincoat.

2027 has a bumper year of motorsport coming to the UK. With the news that the WEC is back at Silverstone alongside Rally GB returning to the WRC calendar, it was already looking much more to my liking. Silverstone has also confirmed it will keep MotoGP until at least 2028 and the British Grand Prix remains one of the highlights of the sporting calendar.

I’m thrilled about Rally GB being back. I was fortunate enough to compete in it as a co-driver and have attended many events over the years, both in the UK and around the world. My great friend and World Championship-winning co-driver, and former FIA Vice President, Robert Reid has written a brilliant column today about the new owners and the new era of the World Rally Championship.