POLAND. Warsaw: The defending European Rally Champion(ERC) Aleskey Lukyanuk co-driven by Aleksey Arnautov, took lead after SS7 and kept the leadership position until the finish. They showed tremendous maturity and careful approach while moving over the three last gravel stages of 2021 ERC season opener.
Andreas Mikkelsen and Ola Floene finished second 18 mins 4 secs behind Lukyanuk. The Norwegian driver was 17 mins 4 secs behind Lukyanuk before entering Warshaw stage but failed to lessen the time gap between them as the 2 km route of Rally Poland 100th Anniversary stage runs on the tarmac and cobblestone covered streets.
ORLEN Team driver Mikolaj Marczyk (Skoda Fabia Rally2) and his co-driver Szymon Gospodarczyk hold on to 3rd position overall. Moreover they were the fastest in ProfiAuto Polish Rally Championship classification, increasing their lead in series standings.
Luck favored Lukyanuk
Lukyanuk wins his twelve title victory at Poland to begin this year’s FIA European Rally Championship. Last week Tuesday, Lukyanuk’s Citroën C3 Rally2 suffered a testing crash after rolling over 5 times and was left beyond immediate repair. Thanks to the steadfast Saintéloc Junior Team who instantly arranged for a replacement and prepared a new car for Lukyanuk in a couple of day’s time ready for the race on Friday.
The finish ceremony held on the grounds of PGE Narodowy Stadium, Warshaw on June 20, 2021 without the presence of any spectator respecting the protocol due to COVID-19 pandemic.
The rally
One of the world’s oldest rallies, The Rally Poland’s route in short is of 14 stages covering a distance of 871.36 kilometres and surfaced with fast flowing gravel roads with three layouts. The SS14 or the Rally Poland 100th Anniversary stage which is named in honour of the Rally held for the first time in the year 1921 is the only sealed-surface test and runs on Tarmac or cobblestones. The 2021 European Rally Championship is the 69th season of the FIA European Rally Championship.
Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile
The Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile or International Automobile Federation (FIA) is an association established on June 20, 1904. FIA works across three key interlinked areas of activity i.e.: Sport, Campaigns and Mobility and promotes motor sport and road safety around the world.
Coming next is Round 2 of the 2021 FIA European Rally Championship, The Rally Liepāja, scheduled from July 1 to 3, 2021, Liepāja, Latvia.
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