Barum Czech Rally Zlín 

STAR RALLY HISTORIC will be held in Zlín for the seventeenth time!

4. 7. 2025 - Roman Ordelt

It is a well established tradition, that not only the modern rally cars are racing all across the Zlín region during August. STAR RALLY HISTORIC is a very tasty appetizer before contemporary cars not only during the city super special stage in the streets of Zlín. This year, it will be held from August 15 to 17, 2025 and will write its seventeenth story. This competition has become an integral part of the Barum Czech Rally Zlín and at the same time a solid pillar of the Czech Championship of Historic racing cars. This year, the Star Rally will again take place as a separate competition for three days from Friday to Sunday, with the Rally Legend exhibition drive, which is not time measured, taking place during the first two days.

In these days, the national authority in the form of the Auto Club of the Czech Republic approved and issued the basic document of the rally in the form of the supplementary regulations. The competition is included in the Autoclub Czech Championship of Historic Rally Cars 2025, and will also be held as a free international event of historic car rally and the mentioned Rally Legend demonstration drive. Experienced organizers from the Autoclub Barum Zlín have prepared a challenging rally for the historians, and the crews will appear on all special stages. "We are sticking to the proven format from previous years. The historians will drive on both days of the weekend, including the Friday super special stage, while the Rally Legend starting field ends on Saturday evening at the finish ramp. On Saturday, the historians will pass in the time gap between the first and second loops of the contemporary cars. On Sunday, the competition cars will start first on the Kateřinice special stage and then they will again drive in the time gap between the main event special stages," said Zdeněk Bělák, director of Star Rally Historic.

The Zlín Historians' Rally measures a total of 562.47 km in its seventeenth edition and includes 10 special stages on 7 different tracks with a total length of 151.55 km. "In the first section, we will run 6 stages, including Friday's city special stage. On Sunday, we will add another 4 stages. The total mileage of the stages is more than fifty kilometers less than within the European field, but we have to build a track according to the regulations for the Czech Historians' Championship," explained Bělák.

The presentation of the competitors will begin on Wednesday morning, when the recommended administrative check-in, issuance of itineraries and GPS will begin in the premises of the Regional Office (building 21) in Zlín. The reconnaissance rides are scheduled for two days and begin on Wednesday, August 13 in the afternoon. On Thursday from 7 p.m., the popular autograph session of the top crews will take place in the Zlaté jablko Shopping and Entertainment Center. The service parking lot will be located in the regional capital of Zlín in the former Svit area on Dvacátá Street (parking lot, Cream company). On Friday, August 15, the technical inspection will also take place in the morning at the Gahurova parking lot. The ceremonial start will take place at 2 p.m. in front of the Zlín City Hall and at exactly 7 p.m., the engines will start to roar on the popular city special in the streets of Zlín. This year, the closed car parking lot is located under the Velké kino. On Saturday, August 16, the crews will complete 5 special stages named Březová, Halenkovice and Bunč, with the crews completing the first two tests twice. A portion of 88 sharp kilometers awaits the starting field during the first day.

The competition will then continue on Sunday, August 17th with four special stages on three stages named Kateřinice, Pindula and Podhoran, when a second run through the legendary stage in the Vsetín area is prepared for the very end. The first car will appear on the finish ramp at 2 pm, where the results will be announced and prizes will be awarded. The Rally Legend exhibition ride will reach the finish line on Saturday evening, measuring a total of 300 km and containing 6 untimed special stages with a total length of 88 km.

With the publication of the supplementary regulations, the acceptance of applications for competitors who apply electronically via the website www.czechrally.com has been launched. The deadline for applications is set for Monday, July 28 at midnight, with the maximum number of applications accepted being 85. "We assume that the main favorites will again be the domestic crews, mostly great drivers with great cars. Jaroslav Vančík has won the event four times, Vlastimil Neumann three times. A strong pack of crews from neighboring countries is expected to arrive, especially from Slovakia, Poland, Austria or Hungary. Previously, many Italians came to us, but they are discouraged by the lengthy travel. In recent years, we have been focusing on showmen from neighboring countries, the popular Jozef Béreš jr. from Slovakia will visit Zlín again this year. Fans can look forward to attractive passes not only on the evening super special stage," concluded Zdeněk Bělák, director of Star Rally Historic.

For more information, visit www.czechrally.com and don't forget to follow Barum Czech Rally Zlín on social networks, official Facebook, Instagram, Twitter profiles and in other press releases.