The FIA World Rally Championship will return to Sardinia for the 20th edition of the Italian appointment organized by the Automobile Club d'Italia from 1 to 4 June. The validity for the WRC Junior has also been confirmed.

20.12.2022 - Season 2023 has not yet begun but Rally Italia Sardegna is already looking to the new season that will mark the first twenty years of the event organized by the Automobile Club d'Italia and valid as the Italian appointment of the World Rally Championship.

The Italian round will be the sixth of the WRC 2023 calendar and will take place on the classic date of early June from 1 to 4 with a base in Olbia, as a result of the alternation with Alghero which hosted the assistance park and the headquarters last year.

The edition of the first twenty years promises surprises and innovations not only related to the race track, which will combine tradition, amarcord and innovation, but also to the collateral initiatives that will be organized in support of this unique event that promises to surprise visitors and enthusiasts.

The history of Rally Italia Sardegna began in October 2004 when the rally valid for the international top series crossed the Mediterranean for the first time to land on the Island of the Four Moors, thus sanctioning the return of the Italian gravel that has contributed so much over the years to enhance the prestige of the Rally d'Italia. Since then, the history has been of great champions who have challenged each other on the island roads: from Solberg to Loeb, from Grönholm to Latvala up to Ogier and Tänak capable of exciting enthusiasts with their feats until they wrote their own name in the Hall of Fame. The same magic is ready to repeat itself to write other wonderful pages of sport and passion.

President of Automobile Club d’Italia Angelo Sticchi Damiani: “An important anniversary is ahead in the history of the Rally of Italy in Sardinia, which has continued the long epic of the Italian appointment of the world rally championship born in the early 70s. A history made of exciting feats, of great drivers and of extraordinary vehicles that, passing through Sardinia, has had a clamorous boost, both from a sporting point of view and a media point of view.

This has also been thanks to the essential economic commitment of the Automobile Club d'Italia and to the splendid synergy created with the whole territory, particularly with the Regione Sardegna but with all the areas crossed or starting and arrival points of the rally.We must therefore be proud of the work done and celebrate the twenty years of this event that I consider the most beautiful race in the world, both for its gravel roads and for the beauty of the hinterland of Sardinia that we ourselves have contributed to enhancing in these years”.

FIA Rally Director Andrew Wheatley:

“Rally Sardegna has grown with the FIA World Rally Championship since Rally d'Italia moved from Sanremo to the Sardinian Island. It is a classic event on the WRC calendar and one that is much awaited by the fans and competitors alike for its stunning and demanding gravel stages and the exquisite Dolce Vita flair at the Service Park.

The Automobile Club d'Italia (ACI), under the presidency of Angelo Sticchi Damiani, has been a long-time partner of the FIA and knows what it takes to put on top-class events in several motor sport disciplines at World Championship level. We are glad to count on their commitment and professionalism this year again to celebrate twenty years of the Sardinian rally, which will also be a round of the FIA Junior WRC championship."

WRC Director of Events Simon Larkin: “Rally Italia Sardegna has developed a habit of creating some of the closest and most exciting finishes on the WRC calendar, therefore it is an event that is always highly anticipated by our fans. We have an excellent long-term relationship with ACI, exemplified in 2020 and 2021 when we hosted two events in Italy in each year and we are happy to be able to celebrate this wonderful anniversary together.”

Thank you for reading!