For the second consecutive year, the 2023 edition of the Rally Serras de Fafe, Felgueiras, Boticas, Vieira do Minho and Cabeceiras de Basto (March 10, 11, 12) will be the opening race of the FIA-ERC (European Rally Championship) and of the Portuguese Rally Championship (CPR), with a program of 17 classifications in three days, it was announced today.
In a press release, Fafe City Hall points out that “it is also the fourth consecutive year that it is on the calendar of the FIA’s second most important rally competition, having acquired a reference status thanks to the joint work and commitment of Demoporto (Motor Sports Club of Porto) and the five municipalities that host it.
In general terms, the structure is very similar to the previous edition, with the only new feature being the introduction of a second “special” in the municipality of Boticas, called Boticas/Vale do Tâmega (9.64 km).
“The first bet of Demoporto and Fafe’s City Hall, through a signed contract, was for a three-year cycle, until last year. At this moment, which is a unique situation, the contract in force only refers to 2023, although we have already received a proposal for continuity. It is in our interest to extend this relationship for the coming years, provided that our current partners, institutional and private, continue with us in the project,” says Carlos Cruz, president of Demoporto, quoted in the same statement.
Regarding the structure of the event, he added: “Sportively, we are looking for a route that will please the drivers and the teams, but it is not at all easy, in terms of budget, to ensure the necessary amounts to support the costs associated with an event of this dimension. There are regions well known for being part, historically, of the World Rally Championship, but Boticas, for example, in this project since the beginning, has a territory with potential to glimpse new horizons at an international level, while the others, like Fafe, Felgueiras or Cabreira, need no introduction”.
Parcídio Summavielle, councilman of the City Council of Fafe and, according to the autarchy, “historically, the great mentor of the organization of rallies as a leverage to divulge and promote tourism in the municipality and neighboring regions”, considers that it is “a pride for Fafe, and more, to integrate the European Rally calendar for the fourth consecutive season”.
“I think the City Halls of Fafe, Felgueiras, Boticas, Vieira do Minho and Cabeceiras de Basto are to be congratulated for being able to offer, in the last two years, conditions that convinced the promoter to bet on this rally. If we look at the current ERC calendar, we see that most of the events are linked to countries, such as the Rallies of Poland, Latvia, Czech Republic, and Hungary, or to large territories, such as the Scandinavian Rally”, he pointed out.
And proudly he concludes: “And it is a reason for great pride that we, five small regions, can stand up to these national organizations, which enhances the quality work we do in partnership with Demoporto. By the way, it is important to say that it was not easy at all, after three years of contract, to keep the rally this year in the European, forcing both Demoporto and the five chambers, to a very high investment and an enormous effort not to waste the capital accumulated over the previous three years”.
