Barum Czech Rally Zlín 

Kopecký won the qualifying SS, Wagner from Austria finished a close second

26. 8. 2022 - Jakub Kudláč

The Czech crew Jan Kopecký, Jan Hloušek racing in the Škoda Fabia Rally2 Evo from the Agrotec Škoda Rally Team was the fastest in the qualifying special stage of the 51st Barum Czech Rally Zlín, which is part of both the European and the Czech Rally Championship 2022. The second place was taken by Austrian Simon Wagner in the same car with a close loss of 0.122 seconds. Third place went to the Czech crew of Filip Mareš, Radovan Bucha with a gap of 0.309 seconds to the winner. The last year's unlucky racer, twenty-three-year-old Cais, competing in a Ford Fiesta R5 MkII, finished just below the podium.

The morning qualification at Žlutava took place in beautiful summer weather. The winner of the qualification, nine-time champion of the Zlín race Kopecký, completed the about four and a half kilometre long track in 2:44.548 minutes. Apart from third Mareš and fourth Cais, Adam Březík was fifth in the elite fifteen, while Martin Vlček finished fifteenth. The European champion Efrén Llarena from Spain, who was crowned this year in advance, took the seventh position.

The fifteen fastest drivers from the qualification will choose their starting position for Saturday's stage in front of the Zlín Town Hall at 15:30 this afternoon. After the qualification, a classic shakedown followed on the closed section.

Order of the qualifying SS Žlutava (4,57 km):
1. Kopecký, Hloušek (CZE, Škoda Fabia Rally2 Evo) 2:44,548 min
2. Wagner, Winter (AUT, Škoda Fabia Rally2 Evo) + 00,122 s
3. Mareš, Bucha (CZE, Škoda Fabia Rally2 Evo) + 00,309 s
4. Cais, Těšínský (CZE, Ford Fiesta R5 MkII) + 00,857 s
5. Březík, Krajča (CZE, Škoda Fabia R5) + 01,113 s
6.Torn, Pannas (EST, Ford Fiesta R5 MkII)) + 01,493 s
7. Llarena, Fernandez (ESP, Škoda Fabia Rally2 Evo) 01,514 s
8. Kristensson, Johansson (SWE, Hyundai i20 R5) + 03,267 s
9.Battistolli, Scattolin (ITA, Škoda Fabia Rally2 Evo) + 03,914 s
10.Herczig, Ferencz (ITA, Škoda Fabia Rally2 Evo) + 04,633 s