| 90 entries in the FIA European Rally Championship and Sparco Italian Absolute Rally Championship. Crugnola-Ometto try to repeat, but the list of contenders is very long. Very difficult prediction. |
| Rome, 19 July 2024 – The entry list for the Rally di Roma Capitale, the event organised by Motorsport Italia and Max Rendina that will take place on 26-28 July as the fifth round of the FIA European Rally Championship and the Sparco 2024 Italian Absolute Rally Championship, has been published. There will be 90 crews ready to compete on the almost 200 kilometres of special stages that characterise the Roman event, with 43 Rally2 cars, a record for the continental series and for the rally itself. These crews include all the major drivers of the speciality in Italy and the protagonists of the European Championship. Andrea Crugnola and Pietro Elia Ometto (Citroen C3 Rally2) are clearly the front-runners for success after their victory in 2023 and their great form, which currently sees them top the Italian rankings. Hayden Paddon and John Kennard (Hyundai i20 N Rally2) also know they can play their cards in Rome. Last year the Kiwis finished third and this year they must try to maximise their result to stay at the top of the European standings. Mathieu Franceschi and Andy Malfoy (Skoda Fabia RS Rally2) are also to be reckoned with. They will certainly be among the protagonists, as will Giandomenico Basso and Lorenzo Granai (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2), who have already won here in 2021 and finished second last year. Also returning after a break are 2022 European Champions Efrèn Llarena and Sara Fernandez (Skoda Fabia RS Rally2) with a lot of news concerning them, while Simone Campedelli and Tania Canton (Skoda Fabia RS Rally2) will try to confirm themselves in contention for victory as has already happened on these special stages in many editions. It was Campedelli himself who won the Capitoline event in 2017, in his debut as a round of the European series. A surprise will be the participation of Stephane Lefebvre and Anthony Hamard, on a Hyundai i20 N Rally2. The Frenchman, a former official Citroen Racing driver in the FIA WRC, recently won the Ardeca Ypres Rally in Belgium in this car and is a candidate to play the starring role. Not to be forgotten, he finished brilliantly in second place in his previous appearance in this year’s CIAR Sparco at the #RA Rally Regione Piemonte. Among the others in Rally2 to be mentioned is Mads Østberg, a well-known name in the international rally scene, flanked by Patrik Barth in a Citroën C3 Rally2. Østberg, already a WRC2 champion, is aiming to do well on the Roman roads and score valuable championship points. Simone Tempestini, multiple Romanian champion and former ERC Junior title winner, in a Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 with Sergiu Itu, opened the season with victory in Hungary. Andrea Mabellini with Virginia Lenzi in a Škoda Fabia RS Rally2, will be making his fifth appearance in the Lazio event with the aim of improving, as will Giacomo Scattolon and Gabriele Zanni in a Citroën C3 Rally2. Watch out also for Slovenian Bostjan Avbelj, with co-driver Damijan Andrejka, in a Škoda Fabia RS Rally2. and the return to the Rally di Roma Capitale of Italian rally legend Paolo Andreucci, together with Rudy Briani, in a Citroën C3 Rally2. The same car for Rachele Somaschini and Nicola Arena, who will also bring to the race the solidarity message linked to the Cystic Fibrosis Research Foundation. Again, Marco Signor with Daniele Michi in a Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 could be in the front group. The race will then also be valid for the Junior ERC, which pits the very young drivers at the wheel of the two-wheel drive Rally4 class cars, and the Italian Absolute Rally Junior Championship, animated by the sparkling Renault Clio Rally5 run by Motorsport Italia. Other ingredients for a particularly interesting and unpredictable dish where making predictions is a bit like casting lots. Very high level and adrenaline guaranteed.Entries for the 8th Zone Rally Cup will close on Sunday 20 July and in the coming days the entry list for this category will also be available, which will complete the picture of this edition of the Rally di Roma Capitale. |
