Barum Czech Rally Zlín 

Record holder Jan Kopecký dominated challenging Saturday's leg

16. 8. 2025 - David Štícha

The tough Saturday's first leg of the 54th BARUM CZECH RALLY ZLÍN 2025 has completed its second runs of the difficult special stages Březová, Halenkovice, and Bunč, which tested the driving skills of the entire starting field. After Saturday, Jan Kopecký and Jiří Hovorka of the Czech Agrotec Škoda Rally Team are leading the starting field in their Škoda Fabia RS Rally2.

The leading drivers' second run through the Březová special stage was uneventful in terms of technical difficulties. Polish driver Miko Marczyk posted an excellent time, beating Jan Kopecký's morning time, but Kopecký still managed to set the second fastest time, just one hundredth of a second behind the Polish driver. Italian Andrea Mabellini and local driver Adam Březík finished within two seconds behind the winner Marczyk, all driving Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 cars.

The Halenkovice special stage suited the best to Jan Kopecký, who also won the second run and kept the accelerating Austrian Simon Wagner with his Hyundai i20 N Rally2 behind. Thanks to his faster time, Wagner jumped ahead of Andrea Mabellini in the overall standings. Erik Cais also recorded an excellent time, which moved him up to fourth place overall. British driver Philip Allen had a major accident when he hit a tree with the left side of his car, damaging the safety frame, and had to withdraw from the competition after reaching the finish line. Technical problems also befell the former leader of the ERC4 category, Calle Carlberg, who was also forced to quit. Young Irishman Craig Rahill took first place in his Lancia Ypsilon Rally4 HF.

The last special stage on Saturday was the famous Bunč. The tough conditions on the track caused a lot of driving mistakes and punctures. Simon Wagner, who had great split times, skidded in a corner, damaged the front of his car, and finished the special stage with a punctured left front tire. His teammate Erik Cais also had a puncture in his left front tire and lost 26 seconds at the finish line, which pushed him out of the top five drivers. British driver Christopher Ingram suffered a double puncture, which meant that his return to the regional capital and to the racing seat did not go as planned, and he did not finish the opening leg.

Jon Armstrong (Ireland) won again in his Ford Fiesta Rally2 MkII, catapulting him into second place, just 6.5 seconds behind the leader Jan Kopecký, who has won Barum rally eleven times. Andrea Mabellini completes the top three. Simon Wagner is fourth with a total loss of 19.2 seconds, and Filip Mareš made it into the top five with his Toyota Yaris GR Rally2.

During the second passes, Polish driver Adrian Rzeźnik took the lead in the ERC3 category. However, he had an accident at Bunč. His compatriot Hubert Kowalczyk in his Renault Clio Rally3 is now in the lead. Local driver Daniel Polášek also finished Bunč with a puncture and is two minutes behind Kowalczyk in the overall standings.

Standings after the 1st leg:
1. J. Kopecký, J. Hovorka (CZE, Škoda Fabia RS Rally2) 1:05:00,4 hod
2. J. Amrstrong, S. Byrne (IRL, Ford Fiesta MkII Rally2) + 6,5 s
3. A. Mabellini, V. Lenz (ITA, Škoda Fabia RS Rally2) + 13,0 s
4. S. Wagner, H. Ostlenderová (AUT/DEU, Hyundai i20 N Rally2) + 19,2 s
5. F. Mareš, R. Bucha (CZE, Toyota GR Yaris Rally2) + 24,5 s
6. E. Cais, D. Trunkát (CZE, Hyundai i20 N Rally2) + 32,1 s
7. M. Marczyk, S. Gospodarczyk (POL, Škoda Fabia RS Rally2) + 36,3 s
8. A. Březík, O. Krajča (CZE, Škoda Fabia RS Rally2) + 42,3 s
9. J. Matulka, D. Syty (POL, Škoda Fabia RS Rally2) + 1:22,4 min
10. J. Kundlák P. Baran (CZE/SVK, Škoda Fabia RS Rally2) + 1:36,7 min

19. H. Kowalczyk, J. Hryniuk (POL, Renault Clio Rally3), 1. place ERC3 + 5:28,3 min
28. C. Rahill, C. Smith (IRL, Lancia Ypsilon Rally4 HF), 1. place ERC4 (J) + 7:46,1 min

Won SS:
3 – Kopecký, 2 – Armstrong, 1 – Mabellini, Marczyk

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