• The 72 Rally Motul Costa Brava ends in Girona with an extraordinary balance and more spectators than ever in the stages and the service park.  
  • Victories for Saunier/Ratier (FIA EHRC), Ferreiro/Anido (Sporting RFEDA), Martínez/Villamayor (Regularity Sport RFEDA) and Miró/Matavacas (Regularity RFEDA).
  • The event has achieved again a new entry-record, with more than 240 teams, 63% of international participation and 70 women participating  as part of the #MotorDona program.
  • Michele Cinotto and Emilio Radaelli, special guests to celebrate the 40th birthday of their victory at the 1984 Rally Costa Brava with an Audi Quattro.

The 72 Rally Motul Costa Brava has become this weekend the epicenter of the best historic motor racing in Europe. The seventy-second edition ended on Saturday night at the podium in Girona, after two days through  the most legendary stages of the country. The event has once again beaten its own record, with 247 teams and an unrivaled range of the most legendary vehicles in rally history. The spectators have really enjoyed it, on the stages and also the Fornells de la Selva service park, where there was a great atmosphere during the two days of the race. The organization of RallyClassics has been exemplary in an event of great logistical complexity.

Year after year, the Rally Motul Costa Brava has grown until becoming the leading rally for historic vehicles in Europe. It is also an unbeatable starting point for the FIA ​​European Historic Rally Championship and the Spanish Championships of this specialty. This year, the participation in the Sporting category has been around 170 teams, an extraordinary number, while in Regularity there have been around seventy teams, to which we must add 7 cars in the Legend category.

The overall victory ​​went to the French team of Julien Saunier and Marie Noëlle Ratier (Porsche 911 SC 3.0), who also dominated the European Championship classification from start to end. It is a great achievement given that this was the first participation in the Rally Motul Costa Brava for both driver and co-driver.

The seventy-second edition was also a boost for the #MotorDona program promoted by RallyClassics. This year there were 70 women participating in the rally, 15% of the total number of participants, which reaches 28% among the total of co-drivers. The #MotorDona program wants to promote equality, diversity and inclusion in the world of classic racing, also within the organization and in the tasks of mechanics, engineers, team leaders or marshals.

All of this is possible thanks to the participation of all the institutions, sponsors, volunteers, and teams. Alex Romani, president of Club RallyClassics: “We can put an excellent mark on this edition of the Rally Motul Costa Brava, based on what the drivers and federations have told us. It has been a memorable Costa Brava, which has moved thousands of people through the different stages of the rally. Never before had so many people been seen on the stages or in the assistance park; we have made a world-class classic motorsports event. I want to especially thank the effort and involvement of the organization’s 500 volunteers; the Rally Motul Costa Brava cannot have a better team. I also want to remember Josep Maria Molas and Vicenç Nubiola, who have left us these days and who were also part of the family of classic enthusiasts“.

The Audi Quattro and Cinotto-Radaelli, great protagonists

For a few years now, it has been a tradition for RallyClassics to commemorate some episode of the rich legacy of the rally. This year, it was the 40th anniversary of the victory of Michele Cinotto and Emilio Radaelli in the Costa Brava of 1984 with an Audi Quattro. Both have been in Girona to celebrate the occasion, and have driven a replica of that Audi Quattro in the Legend category. The celebration was also a tribute to the Audi Quattro, a revolutionary vehicle in the history of rallies in the 80s. In the 72 Rally Motul Costa Brava tenunits of all versions and evolutions gathered.

Michele Cinotto: “I thank the organization that invited me 40 years after that victory on the Costa Brava. The sections are very beautiful, twisty, they make me want to hit the gas. The asphalt is in fantastic condition; I was surprised by the care they take. It’s been very exciting to be back on the Costa Brava and I appreciate the opportunity with all my heart. Hopefully we managed to make people have fun.”

On Thursday evening, the tribute to the Audi Quattro and the Lancia Stratos was celebrated on the podium, in addition to a massive autograph session that delighted the fans. These activities were complemented by a group photo with all the former winners of the Costa Brava present in this seventy-second edition, from Tony Fassina (1982) to “Zippo”/Nicola Arena (2023).

Seat also celebrated the 40th anniversary of the Seat Ibiza, with 6 units of the first two generations of this vehicle. Above all, the fans were fascinated by the two Seat Ibiza Kit Cars driven by ex-factory drivers of the brand Mia Bardolet and Toni Rius. These Ibiza Kit Car are part of the SEAT Históricos collection. These are original units from the second half of the 90s, when Seat won three consecutive 2-Litre  World Rally Championships.

Apart from these, the public has also been able to enjoy live legendary vehicles from Group 4, Group B, Group A and Kit Car, such as the Renault 5 Turbo, Subaru Impreza, Ford Sierra RS Cosworth and Escort, Lancia Delta HF Integrale , Fiat 131 Abarth or BMW M3. A living museum of the history of rallies in action which has been enjoyed by a heterogeneous audience made up of lifelong fans, families and young people seduced by the spectacularity of a unique race.

Record times on a classic itinerary

The 72 Rally Motul Costa Brava was made up of two legs with 160 km chrono. On Friday, the first day consisted of two loops through the Els Àngels, Santa Pellaia curt and Salions-Sant Grau curt stages (73,7 km chrono). On Saturday, the stages were Osor, Collsaplana and Cladells also with two loops (86.3 km). In total, 12 stages on some of the most iconic tarmac roads. The weather conditions have been variable, especially on Friday, so the driving has not been easy at all in this edition.

A good example of the high level of the rally is that several records have been broken. On Friday the Santa Pellaia curt record, which had been in effect since 1991 with François Delecour (7:01.0, Ford Sierra Cosworth) was lowered by Simon Jean-Joseph (Subaru Impreza) by 2.4 seconds.

On Saturday, the current records were already from the modern stage of the Costa Brava as a rally for historic vehicles, and they were all broken. Angelo Lombardo and Giovanni Battista Campeis (Porsche 911 Carrera RS) have set the new record in Osor and Collsaplana, while Martin McCormack and Barney Mitchell (BMW M3) have set it in Cladells, always in the second loop.

Results 72 Rally Motul Costa Brava

FIA European Historic Rally Championship

The 72 Rally Motul Costa Brava was the first event of the FIA ​​European Historic Rally Championship. With 72 teams registered, Saunier/Ratier (Porsche 911 SC 3.0) were the dominant players, leading from the first of the 12 stages until the end. The French team has only raised its foot in the last section, when they already had the overall victory and in category 3 in hand. In second place, Lombardo/Campeis (Porsche 911 Carrera RS) were also winners in category 2. The third step of the podium and first in category 4 went to Thomas Argenti and Meryl Giraldo (BMW M3). Category 1 was taken by James Potter and Tim Sayer with their Ford Escort Twin Cam.

Julien Saunier: “It was my first Costa Brava… and my first rally with this Porsche. The Rally Motul Costa Brava seemed magnificent to me, with some very beautiful stages and a very good organization. The rally was tough, with the asphalt now dry, now wet, quite a challenge. This makes the satisfaction of having won it even greater.”

Spanish Rally Championship for Historic Vehicles (Sporting)

The Girona event was also the first of the Spanish Rally Championship for Historic Vehicles (CERVH). In this category, the victory was not decided until the last stage. With the best time in Cladells 2, Xesús Ferreiro and Xabier Anido (Ford Escort RS 1800) unseated Jordi Ventura and Josep Autet (Ford Sierra Cosworth) by a handful of seconds. Ventura/Autet held a comfortable lead but lost a lot of time in Saturday’s morning section due to mechanical problems. In this category, the leaders were Simon Jean-Joseph and Yannick Roche (Subaru Impreza) who were also the fastest team of the whole rally until their retirement due to a breakdown.

Spanish Rally Championship for Historic Vehicles ( Regularity Sport)

In the Regularity section the podium of the 72 Rally Motul Costa Brava was taken by three Ford Sierra Cosworth 4×4. The victory went to Francisco Martínez and José Manuel Villamayor, followed by Jaime and Enrique Carbonell, and Asier Santamaría and Roberto Rentería.

Spanish Rally Championship for Historic Vehicles (Regularity)

The victory in Regularity was also not decided until the final moments of the rally. The winners were Carles Miró and Ivan Matavacas (Porsche 911 SC 3.0), ahead of Antoni Verdaguer and Antoni Grau (Porsche 944 Turbo) and Jordi Martí and Sergi Giralt (Ford Escort RS 2000 MkI). Antonella Monza and Susanna Nicolini (Porsche 911 T 2.4) were the first female team and took home the #MotorDona trophy.

With these final results, the 72 Rally Motul Costa Brava is now history. The seventy-third edition will return in March 2025 to write a new chapter of passion for rallies.

 

Information and classifications now available on the RallyClassics website