This weekend (April 21-24), the 2022 FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) moved to Zagreb, the capital of Croatia, for a third leg of the race. This is the second asphalt race of the season (the first ice-free event) of the season after the Monte Carlo Rally in late January.
As a new addition to the WRC calendar in 2021, the Croatian Rally was held for the first time last April and attracted 300,000 spectators.
The race is a huge challenge for drivers and teams, and changing grip levels and road conditions are important features of the rally.
Looking back at last year, the first WRC event in Eastern Europe after the 2010 WRC Bulgaria Rally, Toyota Gazoo team star Sebastian Ogier beat teammate Elfin Evans with a narrow margin of 0.6 seconds after the final stage (Powerstage).
In preparation for the WRC's second Croatian adventure, the first in the Raly 1 era, teams have conducted a series of tests on closed public roads with similar characteristics and challenges. However, the unusually low temperatures experienced earlier this month will be in stark contrast to the warm weather during the rally.
However, on Saturdays and Sundays, when the race starts very early, as the race will take place in the mountainous area around Zagreb, the low early morning temperatures are likely to make the pavement wet. At this time, the tire strategy may become a factor affecting the outcome of the rally.
WRC's official tire supplier, Pirelli, brings P Zero HA (hard) and SA (soft) tires to the Croatian Rally. The preferred hard tire is best suited for warm and dry road conditions. Soft tyres are more suitable for lower temperatures and wet road conditions. In case of significant rainfall, riders can use Cinemato rain tires. During the rally, rally 1 (WRC highest class) cars can use up to 28 tires, including 4 for the pre-race test run (Shakedown).
The arrival of the Croatian Rally marks the end of the eight-week off-season after the Swedish Rally. A total of 11 Rally 1 cars are racing (M-Sport 4, Toyota 4, Hyundai 3) And finns Kelly Rovanpera and Jørné Hattunen are currently at the top of the drivers' (navigator) standings with their historic victory at Umeå, Sweden.
2022 Race Route
The second WRC Croatia Rally will be held around Zagreb from 21 to 24 April with a total of 20 stages. The total length of the stage is 291.84 km.
Riders first travel to the Samoborsko Gorje, Umberak and Karlovac mountains in the west/southwest of Zagreb on Friday for four stages each in the morning and afternoon. Mali Lipovec – Grdanjci (SS1/SS5) starts at 8:33 a.m., while Stojdraga - Gornja Vas (SS2/SS5) 20.77 km is quite technical, consisting of a variety of curves.
Saturday's stage, still in the west of Zagreb, has four double-purpose stages, starting with Kostanjevac-Petru Vrh (SS9/SS13), which is also the longest stage of the Ben Rally (23.76 km). The day also included a test in the new stage Platak (SS11/SS15) in the southwest direction of Zagreb, near the Adriatic Sea.
On Sunday, Trako an – Vrbno (SS17/SS19) is also a new stage and the northernmost stage in the entire rally, starting at 7:18 am. The second use of Zagorska Sela-Kumrovec (SS18/SS20) is the "super bonus stage" of this station.
In addition to the new Platak and Trako an-Vrbno stages, the 3.65-kilometer pre-race test run scheduled to start at 9:01 a.m. on Thursday is also a brand new stage for 2022, located near the ancient town of Oki.