Why is it that the WTC runs during the most moderate seasons, Spring Summer and Autumn. Surely it would show riders true skill ability if the Championship also included the Winter months, from say January to September. It would be a real spectacle to see the top riders riding in frost, ice and even snow.

The indoor championship could run from September to December.

It's like every other form of motorsport world championship. It's been totally sanitised for the benefit of TV, sponsors, sponsor's guests and whatever else you can think of. What, have the bikes ridden in muddy conditions..?? Oh no sir, can't have mud covering up the sponsors decals now, can we, or mudguards turned brittle with freezing temeratures snapped off at the slightest touch, sponsors decals crunched into the ground.....

You only have to look at what the FIA have done to the world rally championship and the UK round in particular to see how things have progressed. Once a truly great event, the RAC rally ran for five days in November, one of the toughests events on the calender. First they reduce WRC events to 3 days with a greatly reduced mileage, with some stages driven twice. Then they tell the UK sorry, you can't have it in November anymore, the conditions are too extreme. Can't have rally cars sliding about on ice or sloshing through all those muddy British forests. If you want to keep the rally you'll have to run it in the summer. So the date was brought forward. Naturally the British summer took a hand and the weather was just as bad as it would have been in November. Poetic justice.

OK, rant over. Sorry but your post just struck a chord. I remember the old style format of WTC from 70s and 80s, good traditional events in all conditions, with no indoor circus to get in the way, and when the British round was held, good centre riders could compete and ride alongside their heroes in a field of slightly more than a dozen riders..... Progress isn't always improvement I think.

Simple answer, spectators=$$$$$$$$$