- On Thursday afternoon, the start ceremony of the 70th Rally Motul Costa Brava was held in Girona, with more than 170 teams participating in this anniversary edition.
- Record female participation stands out (13 female drivers and more than 40 female co-drivers) and a large international presence, which reaches half of those registered.
- Two stages await the participants, Friday and Saturday, in an edition that also commemorates the 50th anniversary of the rally’s entry into the European Championship.
The season of the great European historic rallies has now been officially launched. The podium of the 70th Rally Motul Costa Brava, located on the Pont de Pedret in Girona, was the scene for the start ceremony of this event on Thursday afternoon, which opens the season of the European and Spanish Historic Rally Championships.
Girona is, for yet another year, the epicenter of this historic motorsport event that is in excellent health, as evidenced by the more than 170 participating teams. In this anniversary edition, two numbers stand out above the rest: a new record for the participation of foreign teams, since half of the participants will come from other countries, adding 18 different nationalities to the rally; and also a female presence that exceeds any previous record, with 13 female drivers and 25% female co-drivers. Their participation will serve as a starting point for the MotorDona program, created by Club RallyClassics with the collaboration of the Secretaria General de l’Esport I l’Activitat Física de la Generalitat de Catalunya, Ajuntament de Girona, Diputació de Girona, Motul, Riki Cars, Centro Porsche Barcelona, Centro Porsche Girona and SEAT to promote the participation of women in all areas of classic motoring.
Precisely, the family photo has been one of the most special moments of the start ceremony with a wide representation of the women who will participate in the rally. Among them there are several Spain motorsports champions in different disciplines of the sport, as well as experienced international participants.
Before the ceremony, there was an autograph signing with the presence of some of the most outstanding names of this edition, such as Salvador Servià and Xavi Lorza (Seat 124-2000), who will run a rally together again 18 years later; “Tony” Fassina (Lancia Stratos HF), the winner of the rally 40 years ago and the poster image for this edition; or “Lucky” and Fabrizia Pons (Lancia Delta HF Integrale 16V), two-time champions of the Rally Costa Brava and great experts of the event.
Half a century at the highest level
The 70th edition of the Rally Motul Costa Brava coincides with the 50th anniversary of the rally’s entry into the European Championship, in which it continues to be part of, after half a century. An event of extraordinary significance for Catalan, Spanish and continental motorsport. The fact that the winning car in that pioneering 1972 edition, the Fiat 124 Spider 1600 that Raffaele Pinto-Gino Macaluso led to victory, is taking part in this unique 2022 edition, is a real gift for everyone. The vehicle, which will be piloted by Massimo Macaluso, son of Gino himself, will receive the applause of all the fans.
The Rally Costa Brava was considered the reference, building in all those years 70 and also 80 a fame and prestige that made it an event that everyone wanted to attend. Over the years, grew the fame that the winner of the rally had the best chance of being European Champion at the end of the season, a mark that accompanied the Catalan event throughout its European journey and that was true in more half of its editions.
The union of the Costa Brava and Catalunya rallies in 1988 allowed its World Cup promotion. When this stage led by the RACC ended in 2004, the event was part of the Spanish Championship for four seasons, already in the hands of Club RallyClassics.
It was in 2008 that the Rally Costa Brava gained European scoring in Historic Rallies, in which it remains one of the most popular and appreciated events in the championship.
An extraordinary cast of vehicles and participants
Very rarely does a list of entries of such quality come together in a historic rally as the one held by the 70th Rally Motul Costa Brava. The fans will be able to enjoy unique machines such as Lancia Stratos, Audi Quattro, Lancia Rally 037, Opel Manta 400, Fiat 124 Sport Spider or Opel Ascona 400, among many others, divided into the categories of Speed, Regularity, and Legend (exhibition).
Especially noteworthy will be the presence at the rally of Salvador Servià and Xavi Lorza. In 1994, this same team was third overall in the Rally Catalunya-Costa Brava, then scoring for the 2 Litre World Cup. It was Servià’s last asphalt rally before focusing on the Dakar. Now they meet again to premiere the latest SEAT Históricos project, a Group 2 124-2000.
The main specialists of the historic rallies at national and international level, as well as a large cast of rally winners did not want to miss this anniversary edition: Maurizio Verini (1975), Tony Fassina (1982), Salvador Servià (1987), Denis Giraudet (1998, 2001), Valter Chr . Jensen – Erik Pedersen (2011), Marco Verdelli (2012), “Lucky” – Fabrizia Pons (2015, 2017), Jean-François Berenguer – Aline Berenguer (2019), among many others.
The 70 Rally Motul Costa Brava is possible thanks to the collaboration of Ajuntament de Girona, Diputació de Girona, Secretaria General de l’Esport i l’Activitat Física de la Generalitat de Catalunya, Ajuntament de Fornells de la Selva, Ajuntament de Palamós and Ajuntament de Santa Coloma de Farners; and the sponsorship of Hotels Ultonia, GT2i, Blunik, Michelin, Loterías y Apuestas del Estado, Rallycar, Riki Cars, Centro Porsche Girona, Tecnigas, Ibis, Àgora, Alkamel, Garatge Internacional, Suprametal, Alcalà Technology, Sport, L’Esportiu and Integral Apps.
Text: Press RallyClassics with the collaboration of JAS Info Service.
Information of the rally now available on RallyClassics website.
Press contact: comunicacion@rallyclassics.org
