Twenty-six crews will participate in the 50th Cyprus Rally
29/09/2023
Twenty-six crews will participate in the 50th Cyprus Rally, which will take place over the three days of October 6-8, 2023 and is organized by the Cyprus Automobile Association. Representatives from six countries, together with their cars, will appear on the start ramp, on Friday 6th of October, at the old city hall of Nicosia in "Eleftheria" square at 18:00.
The majority or participants will carry the Cypriot flag, with three foreign crews participating in this year's event, and specifically the three leaders of the 2023 Middle East Rally Championship (MERC).
The title-battle for the Middle East
With the 50th Cyprus Rally serving as the final rally of this year's MERC, the title for 2023 will be decided on the island's twelve gravel special stages. Points for the MERC will be contested by three crews, with all three of them having their chances for the title.
Nasser Al-Attiyah from Qatar, the record holder 7-time winner of the Cyprus Rally, with his navigator Mathieu Baumel from Andorra, will “wear” No1 on their Volkswagen Polo GTI R5. The No2 on the start list is given to the leader of this year’s MERC standings, Abdullah Al-Rawahi of Oman with co-driver Ata Al-Hmoud of Jordan, in a Škoda Fabia R5. The third MERC crew, that of Meshari Al-Thefiri (Kuwait) and Nasser Al-Kuwari (Qatar), driving a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X, will take No8.
The finale in the Middle East Rally Championship is expected to be thrilling. With Al-Rawahi carrying a six-point lead ahead of 18-time Middle East Champion Al-Attiyah, he needs to finish in front of the 18-times MERC champion from Qatar to claim his first ever Middle East title. But if Al-Attiyah wins the class (which gives 30pts) and Al-Rawahi finishes second (and gets 24pts) -a highly possible scenario, since only three MERC crews are participating- then we will have a dead heat and the FIA would need to determine the winners of the championship, according to the Sporting Regulations for FIA Regional Rally Championships.
Meshari Al-Thefiri, who is currently 24 points behind the leader, can win the title if he finishes, and at the same time Al-Attiyah and Al-Rawahi retire. In this case, the Kuwaiti will become champion by just one point ahead of Al-Rawahi!
The battle of Cyprus
In addition to the thrilling finale of the Middle East Rally Championship, the two days of the 50th Cyprus Rally will count as the 3rd and 4th rounds of the Cyprus Rally Championship, with each day counting as a separate round for the local championship.
The winner of the 2018 Cyprus Rally and Cypriot champion of 2022, 2021, 2020, 2018 and 2017, Simos Galatariotis, with co-driver Antonis Ioannou in a Volkswagen Polo GTI R5, will place No6 on their door. Galatariotis is currently leading the Cypriot championship, having won both previous two rallies of the year.
Second in the standings of the 2023 Cypriot championship, with two second places in the first two events of the season, is Costas Zenonos, with co-driver Phanos Christophi, with their Citroën DS3 R5 competing with No5. The driver who took 3rd place in the two first local races of the season, Yiangos Yiangou, with co-driver Aristos Nicolaou, with a Hyundai i20 R5, will carry No7 on their car.
No3 has been allocated to the 2019 Cyprus champion, Petros Panteli with co-driver Pambos Laos, who will compete in their brand-new Renault Clio Rally 3. The 2016 and 2015 Cyprus champion, Christos Demosthenous, with co-driver Kypros Christodoulou will apply the No4 to the door of their Škoda Fabia R5. The top10 entries conclude with No9 going to Sofianos Rousou / Constantinos Constantinou with a Ford Fiesta Rally 3, and No10 to Photos Yiannouri / Andreas Chrysostomou with a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX.
Details of the 50th Cyprus Rally
The twelve gravel special stages of the 50th Cyprus Rally have a total length of 195.36 kilometers and will take place on Saturday and Sunday. The start ceremony will be held on Friday, October 6 at 18:00 at “Eleftheria” Square in the capital Nicosia. The finish ceremony will take place at the same venue, on Sunday 8th of October, at 18:30.
The Service Park, Headquarters and Press Center will all be located opposite the Police Headquarters, in Aglantzia, Nicosia.
The route maps:
Leg 1:
https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=13uogjvorZS-45qZHV5kSJqVUOe5YEdY&usp=sharing
Leg 2:
https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=1o9Dub-CUtA8Ru6bhzeZ0Ex4Oj1SU8Rg&usp=sharing
This year’s event is sponsored by Honda – Galatariotis, ANCO Catering Equipment, Cablenet, Stop Fire, Andreopoulos Signs and Farmakas Natural Spring Water. It is supported by the Nicosia and Aglantzia Municipalities.
More info on www.cyprusrally.com.cy.