- With three months to go until the event that kicks off the European and Spanish historic rally championships, everything suggests that the rally will once again reach full capacity with 240 teams.
- The 72 Rally Motul Costa Brava will feature the participation of Michele Cinotto with an Audi Quattro, on the 40th anniversary of his victory in the 1984 Rally Costa Brava.
- The rally will be held from 14th to 16th March 2024, in a two-leg format through the most legendary sections of the Costa Brava and will have its epicentre in Girona.
The 72 Rally Motul Costa Brava already has a date. The seventy-second edition of the oldest rally in Spain will be held from 14th to 16th March 2024 and will maintain the tradition of being the first round of the European and Spanish Historic Rally Championships.
After the 2023 edition reached the full capacity of the rally for the first time, with 240 teams, everything suggests that the 2024 edition will repeat these massive figures. Thus, still three months before the event, more than 150 teams have already reserved their place.
The first details of the rally itinerary have also been announced. The most notable novelty is that the 72 Rally Motul Costa Brava returns to a format of two legs, divided between Friday 15th March and Saturday 16th March. The Sporting, Regularity and Legend (exhibition) teams will face approximately 160 kilometres against the clock divided into 12 stages.
For some time now it has also been traditional that the Rally Motul Costa Brava honours in each edition an outstanding chapter of its rich legacy. On this occasion, the main star will be Michele Cinotto, who will participate with an Audi Quattro on the 40th anniversary of his victory in the rally driving this same model.
Michele Cinotto and the Audi Quattro, stars of the edition
The poster of the 72 Rally Motul Costa Brava features a photo of Michele Cinotto and Emilio Radaelli and the Audi Quattro with which they won the 1984 Rally Costa Brava, the work of the photojournalist Joan Aymamí.
To remember that victory from forty years ago, the Italian driver will be in Girona to compete again at the wheel of an Audi Quattro A2, an exact replica of the car he used in 1984. Cinotto’s participation in the 72 Rally Motul Costa Brava will be celebrated with a tribute to the Audi Quattro, a benchmark in the history of rallying. The organization will prepare a special meeting where this model will be the star, with the presence of different Audi Quattro coming from all over Europe to participate in this edition. Among these teams will be the Italian “Zippo”, the winner of the 2023 edition of the Rally Motul Costa Brava, who will return to Girona to try to repeat his victory.
A two-leg itinerary
The itinerary of the 72 Rally Motul Costa Brava follows the example of previous editions, but with a notable novelty. After evaluating the opinions of drivers and co-drivers, the route has been compacted into two legs, a more suitable format for the teams. Thus, all the vehicles will share the same itinerary, both the FIA European Historic Rally Championship teams, the Sporting and Regularity teams of the Spanish and Catalan championships and the Legend exhibition category.
The itinerary is made up of a selection of the stages that are synonymous of Costa Brava. The first leg will consist of two loops through the Els Àngels, Santa Pellaia Curt and Salions – Sant Grau Curt stages, while on Saturday there will be two loops through Osor, Collsaplana and Cladells. The organization has worked to offer the best stages adapted to historic and classic vehicles, with maximum stage lengths of between 15 and 16 km and tarmac in perfect conditions.
The base of the 72 Rally Motul Costa Brava will be located at the Best Western Premier CMC Girona hotel. The other two epicentres of the activity will be the parc fermé and the podium, located in the Pont de Pedret in Girona, and the Service Park, in Fornells de la Selva, where various attractions for the public will be concentrated.
All information regarding the 72 Rally Motul Costa Brava is available here.