The 52nd Cyprus Rally gets underway

The 52nd International Cyprus Rally, the final round of the FIA Middle East Rally Championship (MERC), got underway in Larnaca on Friday, 23 October. The rally will finish in the city on Sunday, 25 October, when the new Middle East Rally Champion will be crowned.

The ceremonial start was given by Mr Antonis Michaelides, President of the Cyprus Automobile Association, which has organised the event since 1970, in the presence of Mr Imad Lahoud, Chair of the FIA Rally Commission. Also attending were Mr Louis Christodoulides, President of the Youth and Sports Committee of Larnaca Municipality, and Mr Mohammad Ahmad Al-Kubaisi, representing the Ambassador of Qatar to Cyprus.

30 crews at the Ceremonial Start

A total of 30 crews took the start, representing Cyprus and countries across the Middle East and Europe, including Qatar, Spain, Romania, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Lebanon. The Cyprus rally has also attracted considerable media interest, with journalists accredited from Oman, Qatar, Lebanon and Greece, as well as Turkish Cypriot media representatives.

Car No. 1 was Qatar’s Nasser Al-Attiyah, the current leader of the Middle East Rally Championship. Driving a Škoda Fabia, he must win in Cyprus to secure the 21st Middle East championship title of his career, while also aiming for a record-extending tenth victory in the history of the Cyprus Rally. He set the fastest time in Friday morning’s qualifying session and will run tenth on the road, allowing him to avoid the disadvantage of having to clear loose gravel for the competitors behind him.

Starting second in another Škoda Fabia is Oman’s Al-Rawahi, who shared the Middle East championship title with Al-Attiyah in 2024. He set the third-fastest time in qualifying.

Saudi Arabia’s 22-year-old Hamza Bakhashab, also driving a Škoda Fabia, is just four points behind Al-Attiyah in the championship standings. Twenty-five years ago, his father, Abdullah, competed in the Cyprus Rally. Khalifa Al-Attiyah, driving a Ford Fiesta, is also in contention, nine points behind Nasser Al-Attiyah.

Cyprus’ leading contenders

The leading Cypriot crews will also be challenging for overall victory. Multiple national champion Simos Galatariotis, driving a Škoda Fabia, starts with car No. 6 after setting the second-fastest time in the morning’s qualifying session. Last year’s Cyprus’ Champion, Panayiotis Yiangou, is another strong contender in his Hyundai i20, carrying car No. 5.

The Rally2 category also features Turkish Cypriot competitors Sukuroglou and Topcuoclu in a Volkswagen Polo GTI.

There are several noteworthy entries in Rally3, including Zenonos/Christofi in a Ford Fiesta, as well as Poseidias/P. Laos and Y. Yiangou/P. Englezou, both competing in Renault Clio.

The RC2 category features three Mitsubishi Lancers: the Evo X cars of Prodromou/Episkopou and Jordanian crew Jweihan/Juma, and the Evo IX of K. Laos/Stylianou.

The two-wheel-drive (2WD) category is also expected to provide plenty of competition, with Sioferos/Elia in a Peugeot 208, Parellis/Papandreou in an Opel Corsa, Manoli/P. Laos in a Peugeot 208, and Stylianou/Makrides in a Ford Fiesta.

A further 11 crews will compete in older-generation rally cars (Class S) in a separate event of local interest.

The Service Park is located next to the Mall of Cyprus, opposite the E-CARS showroom, and is open to the public.

The rally covers a total distance of 657.74 km, including 183.92 km across 12 gravel special stages.