The 52nd edition of Rallye Sanremo actually started on August 24th when entry opened. This first important phase that will lead to start the engines and wave the starting flag, will close on September 13th. The organizers of AC Sanremo started working long ago already, because the organization of an event that with the time became an icon in international rallying, requires the maximum effort and accuracy in all details.
The event will be highly competitive but with attention to safety, two aspects that always characterized Rallye Sanremo, that this year will take place from September 21st to 25th, and is valid both for the Italian Rally Championship and the Intercontinental Rally Challenge. Two different championships that proceed in parallel as usual during this event on the Ligurian west coast: on one side the Italian rallying aces ready to challenge among them to win and show off on the international “stage” and on the other side the international drivers that will arrive once again in Liguria to fight for win and challenge the “home” drivers.
Eleven special stages for 220.030 timed kilometers and a total route of 465.630 km. These are the main characteristics of a race that will confirm, also in 2010, its beauty and that will offer great motorsport’s moments, like the ones that right here inspired the entire world rallying.
“The 2010 edition will be quite classic again – said Sergio Maiga, President of the Organizing Committee – A first leg closing with the usual grand final of the “Night Ring” and a second leg less tough but not less demanding. The route will be quite tight and not very different from the last few years. Also this year edition will maintain the characteristics of few but long special stages, that I consider as for “tough men”, very demanding both on drivers and cars. We hope to have a good entry list of drivers and teams, considering what happened in both the Championships we are about to represent and also for the appreciation showed by several people in the past”.
As usual Rallye Sanremo will have quite an important media support, especially on television thanks to Eurosport world broadcast and RAI Sport that will broadcast live SS9 during the second day of the event, at 01.00 pm. RAI offered this service throughout the whole Italian rallying season.
THE PROGRAM OF THE RACE: In the second half of September Sanremo, a town for vacations, a town of songs (the Saremo Italian Music Festival), a town with an astonishing natural beauty placed in a unique territory, but above all a town of “rally”, will be once again the world stage for the best Italian and international drivers and teams.
The recce of the route will take place on September 21st and 22nd with specified timings and under the strict control of the Marshals. After this first “competitive prelude”, that will be for sure quite important for the final result, competitors will undergo administrative checks and scrutineering, starting in the evening on Wednesday 22nd (from 06.00 pm to 11.00 pm), at the Old railway station in Sanremo. The same day ad 04.00 pm the Rally Village, located as usual inside the Service Park along the sea front, will open. The location will allow anyone to be part of the colorful and exciting rallying world.
Administrative checks and scrutineering will continue the next day, Thursday September 23rd. from 09.00 am to 04.00 pm. The Shakedown, the racing cars’ test, will take place from 12.30 pm to 05.00 pm, at San Romolo.
The race will start at 01.00 pm on Friday September 24th. It’ll be a tough though exciting day that will close in Sanremo after midnight. The challenge will take place on roads that form part of rallying history: Coldirodi, Apricale and Monte Bignone. These special stages will be run first one at the time and then all together in the fearsome “Ring” of 44 km. After six special stages competitors would have covered 108,610 timed kilometers out of a total of 220.
Saturday September 25th, the final day, there will be other five special stages. The short stage of Bajardo, less than two kilometers long, will be broadcasted live by RAI Sport, enough to let viewers appreciate the peculiarity of road races. The special stages of Monte Ceppo and Passo Teglia are almost 30 km long each one, so is not going to be really a “quiet” day. The second day will comprehend other 111,420 timed kilometers. The final arrival is provided at 03.37 pm.
SEVEN YAERS LATER WRC CARS ARE BACK IN SANREMO
Who said “Sanremo is always Sanremo”? It’s true anyway… Sanremo is always ready to surprise, mainly in motorsport, the so called “town of flowers” is always ready to give its best. Seven years after their last evolutions on the tarmac roads of the Ligurian west coast, World Rally Cars are back where they were protagonists of legendary challenges. As a matter of fact “Legend” is the name of the race created on purpose for the queens of the world rally series that will be in town again, thanks to the brilliant intuition of Sergio Maiga and the members of his staff: “The idea – explains Maiga – is to give to as many drivers as possible the opportunity to pour out their passion in the same event together with the big drivers of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge and the Italian Rally Championship, including drivers who, due to different reasons, do not have the possibility to compete in a highly demanding race as historically is Rallye Sanremo”.
“Sanremo Legend”, will be a “race in the race”, reserved not only to historic cars but to all cars, including expired approval cars. These cars will challenge on a shorter route, 8 special stages for a total of 120 timed kilometers. Sure a shorter route but though exciting running it.
