Longyou Rally to wrap up APRC this weekend

The fourth round of the China National Rally Championships (CRC) will be held in Longyou, in east China’s Zhejiang province from November 13 to 15.  This event is more competitive and attractive as the Longyou stage also serves as the last stage of 2009 FIA Asia-Pacific Rally Championships (APRC). 

This is the fourth time that Longyou has hosted a major international rally event, and also the seventh time that a national championship is held in the beautiful county, which is 200 kilometers from Hangzhou and 400 kilometers from Shanghai.

Organized by International Automobile Federation (FIA), Federation of Automobile Sports of China (FASC) and sponsored by Guanghe – Xinhufengjing, the rally will cover about 750km, including 16 stages, all gravel surface.  Drivers will have to finish 10 stages on November 13 and 14 before completing the remaining six stages on November 15.

So far, 81 cars, with 51 in Group N and 30 in CRC Group S, have registered to join in one of the season’s most significant races. All the top domestic drivers are coming to challenge the title as well as the overseas opponents. Eleven manufacturers will send 13 different cars to make the event a spectacular one. 

Although, the Longyou Rally is the last event of APRC, the overall champion has been determined after the previous round in Indonesia where Australian driver Cody Crocker secured the title. It is Crocker’s fourth consecutive APRC title but he will also remain as the stage-win favorite in Longyou, where he has won in the past two years. 

With the winner of overall standings determined, the race will be more competitive in the FIA’s Asia Cup, where Crocker only has a three-points lead over Japan’s Katsuhiko Taguchi and 13 points advantage over Indonesian Rifat Sungkar. The top three will battle it out in Longyou to determine who is the number 1 in the Asia Cup.

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