The world rally makes a stop in Belgium, for the Ypres Rally Belgium scheduled until Sunday 21 August. It is the ninth round of the Wrc2022 and for the occasion the drivers return to lead the powerful Rally1 on asphalt.
Championship situation
After the podium in Finland, Kalle Rovemperä (Toyota) comes to Belgium with 94 points clear of his closest rival, Ott Tänak (Hyundai). A considerable advantage that, right here in Belgium, gives the young Finn the possibility of the first match point for the Championship with four games to spare. Recall that last year, at the first edition of the Ypres rally in Wrc, Rovamperä himself was the protagonist of a beautiful race that saw him finish in third place overall.
In this race, eyes also on Neuville who plays at home here and could spark a good match with Estonian and teammate Ott Tänak, fresh winner in Finland and ahead of the Belgian driver by only one point.
A young competition in the WRC but with a well-known reputation
Although the Ypres Rally is a recent addition to the WRC program, the event is considered a classic on the European rally calendar. Its reputation is built on its fast, narrow rural roads around the West Flanders region, which are often lined with wide drains and include many intersections where dirt is often dragged onto the road, making the skill of the drivers even more important. Unlike last year, there will be no trip east to Spa-Francorchamps, with all three days of the rally taking place within a 30km radius of the town of Ypres, which houses its own service park in the its historic center. A four-stage counterclockwise circuit runs twice on Fridays and Saturdays, with more mileage on the second day. While on Sunday two tests are scheduled to be repeated twice, with the well-known Kemmelberg who will host the Power Stage at the end of the rally, a valid test to assign extra points to the drivers’ classification.
The total timed mileage is 281.58 km.