The Intercontinental Rally Championship heads to Sardinia, Italy for the first time this weekend for the Rally d’Italia Sardegna, the fifth round of this year’s championship with Burcu Cetinkaya set to make history.
The itinerary for the former World Rally Championship event has been slightly modified and will take in a bigger part of the island, including an opening ceremony in the capital Cagliari. There are also new stages based around the town of Oristano to the west of the island.
'To drive a Super 2000 car has been my dream' – Burcu
Turkish driver Cetinkaya will become the first female driver to compete in an expanded programme of IRC events when she starts her season in Sardinia. Burcu has previous IRC experience having competed in the Geko Ypres Rally and Barum Czech Rally Zlin in the past.
The 29-year-old will drive a Peugeot 207 Super 2000 and will compete in six further IRC events during her maiden campaign.
“To drive a Super 2000 car has been my dream and the Peugeot has been a very successful car in the IRC for the last few seasons so it is a good choice,” she said.
Burcu will be joined in Italy by Sebastien Ogier, who helped her test for the rally. The Frenchman – fresh from his first-ever WRC win in Portugal last weekend – has been drafted in by Peugeot to help boost their quest for the manufacturers’ title.
Ogier won the Rallye Automobile Monte-Carlo in 2009 at the wheel of a 207 S2000, his first appearance in the IRC. Olivier Quesnal, Peugeot’s Sport director, believes his appearance in Sardinia will help take the pressure off Kris Meeke.
“For the drivers’ title I am not anxious because I am sure Kris Meeke can do it again because the Peugeot is still a good car with a good performance,” said Quesnel. “For the manufacturers’ title Kris is a little bit alone because [the other Peugeot drivers] Bruno Magalhães and Thierry Neuville are inexperienced in the IRC, so I don’t have any problem to ask Ogier to come help Peugeot get the title again.”
Crashes in Monaco and Argentina have harmed defending champion Meeke’s title push and he is currently 17 points behind leader Juho Hanninen. And, the Irishman is predicting a close rally as he aims for a podium place in Italy.
“This is probably the biggest race of the season so far and I can’t wait,” Meeke said. “A podium would be nice but there are lots more events later in the year where I’m more capable of fighting at the front.
“We had a bad event in Argentina and it’s similar terrain [in Sardinia]. I’m not sure how we’ll get on but I’m not expecting to run away with it, especially with Hänninen in the mix.”
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