RALLY GUANAJUATO MÉXICO, March 16-19, 2023
2023 FIA World Rally Championship, round 3
For immediate release
Friday, February 24th, 2023
IMPRESSIVE ENTRY LIST ANNOUNCED FOR NEXT MONTH’S RALLY GUANAJUATO MÉXICO
• 10 Rally1 and 10 WRC2 Rally2 cars on impressive entry for León-based event
LEÓN (México): Rally Guanajuato México has attracted 10 Rally1 entries, a similar number of Rally2 cars competing in the WRC2 category and an additional dozen crews, including eight registered for the NACAM Rally Championship.
The event returns as the third round of the 2023 FIA World Championship calendar for the first time since March 2020 and the Covid-19 pandemic and takes place a week later than usual on March 16th-19th.
Estonian driver Ott Tänäk currently leads the Drivers’ Championship and he heads the field in the first of three M-Sport Ford World Rally Team Puma Rally1 Hybrids. Pierre-Louis Loubet and Jourdan Serderidis crew the other two M-Sport cars.
The Mexican event also sees the return to action of eight-time World Champion Sébastien Ogier in the Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team. The Frenchman will be chasing a seventh victory over the gravel stages in the mountains around Guanajuato and León, as he also bids to support Toyota’s quest for the Manufacturers’ Championship.
Defending World Champion Kalle Rovanperä, Elfyn Evans and Takamoto Katuta crew the other three Yaris Rally1 Hybrids.
The Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team is pushing for a Drivers’ and Manufacturers’ double this season and Thierry Neuville currently lies third in the Drivers’ Championship. The Belgian drives the first of three i20 N Rally1 Hybrids, alongside Esapekka Lappi and Dani Sordo.
Former M-Sport Ford factory driver Gus Greensmith heads the WRC2 field in a Škoda Fabia R5 and lines up against the likes of young Oliver Solberg, M-Sport Ford’s Adrien Fourmaux, the Toksport duo of Nikolay Gryazin and Emil Lindholm, Poland’s Kajetan Kajetanowicz and WRC veteran and rallying all-rounder Martin Prokop.
Local interest centres around the NACAM Rally Championship, where Ricardo Cordero, Miguel Granados and Carlos Salas are the top three seeds. There are also Mexican entries for Alejandro Mauro Sanchez, Patrice Spitalier, Gustavo Urióstegui, Oscar Uribe, Rafael Maggio and Emiliano Retama.
Ends