- The Escuderia Terra Negra duo, aboard their Lancia Beta Coupé, reached their fourth victory in this event, the third in a row.
- This Regularity rally, one of the most prestigious in Europe, has already dates confirmed for 2022: it will be held from 27th to 30th October and it is a candidate to host the FIA Trophy for Historic Regularity Rallies.
After three stages, 1,000 kilometres and 23 regularity stages, the number 1 vehicle arrived in Palamós as the winner of the XVIII Rally Costa Brava Històric. The Carles Fortuny / Carles Jiménez (Lancia Beta Coupé) duo continues to break records in this event, reaching their fourth victory, the third in a row.
After a large portion of the rally with minimal differences between the teams, the Saturday night section decided which team was going to win the rally. 10.8 penalty points separated the winners from the second classified, Juan Pedro García / Sergi Giralt (Autobianchi A112 Abarth), with the experienced Carles Miró / Ivan Matavacas (Porsche 911 SC) completing the podium. The high competitiveness of the Regularity is confirmed by the fact that 15 different winners divided the 23 sections of which the rally consisted.
The accumulation of stages and kilometres did not pass in vain for the participants, completing the event in its different categories about fifty vehicles, between cars and motorcycles. Precisely in the two-wheel category, the victory ended in the hands of Jordi Martí / Xavier Tibau (BMW R80 GS), proving to be one of the most experienced teams in this rally.
Carles Fortuny / Carles Jiménez (Lancia Beta Coupé), winners: “Once again, equality has been maximum in the first positions and we are very satisfied to have achieved the victory. Now we have to think about the next edition, in which we will surely be here again, but perhaps with surprises”.
Juan Pedro García / Sergi Giralt (Autobianchi A112 Abarth) second position: “We are very happy to be on the podium, the car worked flawless and we got on perfectly. We will return next year, without a doubt, our goal is to win the Rally Costa Brava Històric together and we will return with even more enthusiasm ”.
Carles Miró / Ivan Matavacas (Porsche 911 SC), third position: “in this discipline it is so important to do well and follow the average as well as to be lucky, and we have not had it this time, just when we were leaders. The most important thing is that we have been competitive for another year. We will be back”.
About eighty classic vehicles, between cars and motorcycles, have faced one of the best Regularity rallies in Europe, following average speeds always adapted to the limits of the road, with a maximum of 50 km / h. The best classifieds in the rally will be able to participate in the FIA Trophy for Historic Regularity Rallies, the European final of this discipline, which this year will host the Poland Historic Rally.
Alex Romani, president of RallyClassics, explains that “this edition has once again shown us the very high level we have in this country in terms of regularity. It was exciting to see that so many different teams have been able to win at least one stage of the rally, and that after two stages and 600 kilometers, the differences were less than a second between the top three. Now we have to start thinking about the XIX Rally Costa Brava Històric, which already has confirmed dates. This classic motorsport festival will return to Palamós from 27th to 30th October, in a rally that is a candidate to host the FIA Trophy for Historic Regularity Rallies in 2022.”
Big success of the complementary activities in the Passeig del Mar de Palamós
Once again, the Rally Costa Brava Històric confirmed that it is much more than a historic rally. With activities going on during all weekend, big crowds gathered to support the teams and enjoy some of these activities.
One of the highlights was to gather Antonio Zanini (European Rally Champion in 1980) and the classic car collectors Salvador Claret and Ramon Magriñà and their respective vintage vehicles: the Abadal-Buick Centella, the Sizaire & Naudin voiturette (1908) and the Delahaye 135 Sport. The three vehicles, and their owners, delighted the fans who gathered in the Passeig del Mar de Palamós, as well as those lucky ones who saw them in action on the route they made around the fishing village.
There was also a parade of the rally participants passing through the centre of Palamós and along the Sant Antoni de Calonge promenade, a perfect occasion to bring the event to the citizens of both organising villages. In addition, the Kuruma Motorsport driving simulators broke the record number of participants in the Virtual Rally that took place during the weekend. More than 140 people competed with the same vehicle and stage with the aim of getting on the podium with the rally winners.
Summary of the XVIII Rally Costa Brava Històric
The activity started on Thursday with the celebration of the “Calonge and Sant Antoni” prologue stage, a small appetizer of the rally in the form of the first two sections. An easy stage in general but with different tricks, from which Francesc Costa / Miquel Pumarola (Honda XL 600 LM Paris Dakar) came out as scratch leaders and also leaders in motorcycles, just ahead of Juan Pedro García / Sergi Giralt (Autobianchi A112 Abarth). Ahead were still 21 of the 23 Regularity stages of a rally which requires maximum concentration and attention at all times, both from drivers and co-drivers.
With the start of the second stage, the real adventure of the Rally Costa Brava Històric began. 12 stages and approximately 12 hours en route that also served to define the teams that would be in a position to compete for the victory. The participants set course for historic roads of the Rally Costa Brava such as La Ganga, Santa Pellaia or Els Àngels. The regrouping at the Ca L’Enric, Michelin Star Restaurant, put a gastronomic touch to the rally, before starting the night sections along the roads of La Garrotxa, Osona, La Selva, Gironès and Baix Empordà regions.
The changes of leaders and the alternation of stage winners were a constant throughout the day. Thus, in the first 14 stages of the rally, 11 different stage winners were counted. At the end of the stage, Juan Pedro García / Sergi Giralt (Autobianchi A112 Abarth) went to sleep as rally leaders, despite being followed for only 2 tenths of a second by Carles Fortuny / Carles Jiménez ( Lancia Beta Coupé), with Carles Miró / Ivan Matavacas (Porsche 911 SC) in third position less than a second behind the leaders.
Accompanied by a large audience that filled the Palamós promenade, the participants set off on Saturday each with a goal, whether it was the fight for victory, the improvement in the classification or the milestone of finishing and enjoying the experience of one of the best regularity rallies. Soon they were already facing the Romanyà stage, before reaching roads that have defined the international fame of the Rally Costa Brava, such as Cladells, Collsaplana or Alpens-Les Llosses.
The break came at this stage during the regrouping planned in Ripoll, the perfect moment to gather strength and face the last hours of competition. The last section came with selective roads such as Vidrà or Les Encies – Les Serres, before entering an expanded version of the famous Tossa – St.Grau. Finally, the participants entered the parc fermé after Sunday midnight to end the XVIII Rally Costa Brava Històric.
Rally Costa Brava Històric winners
2021 – Carles Fortuny-Carles Jiménez (Lancia Beta Coupé)
2020 – Carles Fortuny-Carles Jiménez (Lancia Beta Coupé)
2019 – Carles Fortuny-Carles Jiménez (Lancia Beta Coupé)
2018 – David Nogareda-Sergi Giralt (Porsche 911 S)
2017 – Carles Fortuny-Carles Jiménez (Lancia Beta Coupé)
2016 – Yves Deflandre-Joseph Lambert (Porsche 911)
2015 – Víctor Sagi-Víctor Sagi (Porsche 911 S)
2014 – Lluís Pallí-Guillem Buscarons (Innocenti Mini Cooper)
2013 – Yves Deflandre-Joseph Lambert (Porsche 911)
2012 – José Lareppe-Joseph Lambert (Opel Ascona)
2011 – Carles Miró-Jesús Arriezu (Porsche 911)
2010 – Raymond Horgnies-Christophe Hayez (Porsche 911)
2009 – Joao Mexia-Nuno Sales (Porsche 911)
2008 – Salvador Tallada-Toni Bagó (VW Golf)
2007 – Carlo Fiorito-Luigia Fiorito (Autobianchi A-112)
2006 – Carlo Fiorito-Luigia Fiorito (Autobianchi A-112)
2005 – Antonio Zanini-Glòria Zanini (Porsche 911)
2004 – Jaume Tobella-Alex Santacatalina (Porsche 911)
The next rally organized by RallyClassics will be the 69 Rally Costa Brava, the last round of the FIA European Historic Rally Championship 2021 season, to be held in Girona from 18th to 21st November.
The XVIII Rally Costa Brava Històric has been possible thanks to the collaboration of FECOTUR, Ajuntament de Palamós, Hotel Trias, Aigua de Vilajuïga, Diputació de Girona, Secretaria General de l’Esport i de l’Activitat Física de la Generalitat de Catalunya, Ajuntament de Calonge i Sant Antoni, Ajuntament de Ripoll, Restaurant Ca L’Enric, Blunik, MiRally, L’Esportiu, SPORT, News Classic Racing, Àgora, Garatge Internacional, Suprametal, GaudíEvents and Integral Apps.
More information of the 69 Rally Costa Brava: https://www.rallyclassics.club/en/69-rally-costa-brava/
