Rally GB is celebrating its 75th Anniversary this year, and to commemorate the occasion, a Lanchester 15/18 (similar to the one driven by Colonel A.H. Loughborough to victory in the first Rally GB in 1932) and a Ford Focus WRCar (similar to the one driven by Marcus Grönholm to victory last year) were on display. A lot has changed in terms of car performance over the last 75 years: the Lanchester boasts 18bhp, does 0-60 in 35 seconds, has a top speed 72mph and originally cost £1,200. The Ford Focus WRC is 300bhp, does 0-60 in 3 seconds, has a top speed of 140mph and costs £350,000.

Andrew Coe outlined what will take place during this year’s Wales Rally GB – the final round of the FIA World Rally Championship, which runs between Thursday 29 November – Sunday 2 December. In brief, the significant announcements made at the Senedd were:

• The route will be similar to that ran successfully in 2006.
• Return of night stages for all competitors. On Legs 1 and 2 the timing of the last special stage will be set so that all competitors complete these stages in darkness.  The last time a WRGB forest stage was run wholly in dark was 2001. The stage through Trawscoed (SS 8) was won by Harri Rovenpera in a Peugeot 206 WRC).
• The major change to the route for 2007 is a new location for the Service Park. This will be located within the SA1 Swansea Waterfront development bringing the Service Park close to Swansea City centre to increase its attraction to spectators; the move will also provide access to permanent facilities for use by the rally.
• To celebrate the 75th Anniversary, the largest collection of Rally GB winning cars and their drivers will be invited to take part in a series of events, including a spectacular gala dinner on the eve of the rally, a parade of past winners’ cars – and a dedicated autograph-signing session where spectators can meet their heroes of yesteryear. 
• The Ceremonial Start on Thursday evening and the Finish on Sunday will both take place in a new location near Cardiff City Hall.
• Rally HQ will remain at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff.
• Maximum number of entries accepted will be 120 – a quarter of which are expected for the sixth and final round of the Tesco 99 Octane British Rally Championship.
• Tickets on sale from Friday 15 June.  Good news for rally fans is that attending the 2007 Wales Rally GB will represent excellent value for money, as ticket prices will be the same as in 2005/06. 
• New hospitality arrangements will include cost-effective bespoke packages, widening the appeal to dedicated fans and local businesses.
• New website launched: www.walesrallygb.com

Andrew Coe, said: “It is a tremendous honour to be organising the 75th birthday of the rally. We have some really exciting initiatives for 2007 to help celebrate this iconic British sporting event. This is a great opportunity to combine a celebration of the past with the excitement of the opportunities moving forward. The rally has come a very long way since its inception and has never been afraid to evolve and innovate.

“With initiatives such as Art Car, new developments at the Millennium Stadium and programmes to promote the sport to new audiences, we are trying to build on the success of the past with a contemporary, visionary event that combines the best of yesterday and tomorrow. What better way to look forward than to look at where we are, where we’ve been – and raise a glass to the future.”

Three times Rally GB winner and former World Rally Champion, Colin McRae commented: “The RAC Rally, as it is still fondly referred to, is one of motor sport’s classic events and we, as a nation, should be rightly proud of its heritage and history. The event has changed much since I first won it, but its continued high standards of organisation and outlook justify its place in the modern World Rally Championship.”

End of copy. 13th June 2007.

For more information please contact John Horton, National Press Officer.
Telephone: 0121 378 2828.
Mobile: 07778 282899.
Email: media@walesrallygb.com

Additional notes for journalists:

 
This year's Wales Rally GB will be the 75th Anniversary of the event.

Since its inception in 1932 the rally has been run 62 times; this year’s event will be the 63rd edition. Enforced stoppages have included World War 2, Suez Crisis (1957) and Foot and Mouth (1967).

No “Overall Classification” was produced until 1953 when the event finished in Hastings and was won by Yorkshire husband-and-wife Ian and Pat Appleyard in a Jaguar XK120.
 
Wales Rally GB is the British and final round of the 16-round FIA World Rally Championship (WRC). It is one of only six events that have retained their unbroken World Championship status since the WRC was established in 1973.

Cardiff first hosted the event in 2000 and the Welsh Assembly Government has supported the event since 2003.

WRGB is the sixth and final round of the Tesco 99 Octane British Rally Championship and the final round of the FIA Production World Rally Championship.
 
Wales Rally GB is held annually and is the UK’s biggest motor sport event. It is organised and promoted by International Motor Sports Ltd (IMS), the commercial arm of the Berkshire-based Motor Sports Association (MSA), the governing body for all UK motor sport.