A LOOK BACK ON THE 25th RALLY MAROC CLASSIC
10-16 MARCH 2018
TANGER – FES – IFRANE – MERZOUGA – BIN EL OUIDANE – MARRAKECH
Under the High Patronage of His Majesty Mohamed VI, King of Morocco, the 25th edition of the Maroc Classic rally, the one and only precision regularity rally in Morocco, took place from March 10 to 16, 2018 between TANGIER and MARRAKECH. Cyril NEVEU and his team have endeavored to preserve the fundamentals of the event by bringing something new with a start from TANGIER and a completely renewed itinerary. So 30 crews from Europe, Australia and Morocco met in TANGIER to face the 6 stages, 2100km, and the 20 regularity events of this 25th Morocco Classic Rally.
The first stage, completely new, offered an exceptional spectacle in the streets of Tangier where 30 crews marched at the wheel of their legendary cars, with among others, no less than five Shelby Cobra, a Ferrari 275 GTB, a Lancia Aurelia B24 Americana , three magnificent Austin Healeys, two DS (a totally prepared “rally” and a convertible) as well as Jaguar XK roadsters.
Choosing TANGIER as the start for this 25th anniversary also meant opening up new spaces in the northern regions of the Kingdom, rarely frequented by the rally, with winding and narrow roads that blended perfectly into the high cliffs of the Mediterranean coast towards Ceuta and Tetouan, before joining the foothills of the Rif and Chefchaouen the blue city and then delving into the history of Fes, the imperial city.
The Middle Atlas was proposed as a third stage where the competitors won playgrounds, between Taza and Ifrane, passing through the Tazekka National Park. By orienting the route towards the East of the Kingdom and leaving the spotlight to the splendours of the city and its legendary medina, the rally offered the participants the possibility of a deserved relaxation time once they arrived in “little Moroccan Switzerland” city that is Ifrane and its hotel that looks like a mountain chalet.
Admittedly, the climate was not always right for the first stages, but nothing prevented the participants from having a great time on the roads made slippery and tricky by the bad weather before the sun’s rays dried them out. irretrievably. The Rally sometimes took on the appearance of Monte-Carlo and the Acropolis, as the weather conditions in themselves constituted a major challenge for the participants and the Cyril Neveu Promotion team.
Halfway through the rally, a hierarchy was already well established among the teams fighting for the final victory with the couple Reda Meziane and Zineb Chemao (Porsche 911) who won the first 3 stages in the “Classic” category, leaving only a few chances for their pursuers to catch up with them. However, the Arlaud couple remained in ambush at the wheel of their Citroën DS, totally adapted to the terrain but sometimes lacking in power, and the 2017 winners, Carlos Ghistelinck and Lieven David, in their Mercedes 280 SE, which is very cumbersome but very efficient on Moroccan roads…< br>
In the “Prestige” category, the Dodge Viper of “Father and Son” Ouvier was also the author of unequivocal performances in front of the two Mercedes AMG coupés launched in pursuit.
After visiting the North of the Kingdom and its very rich agricultural and forest regions, the Morocco Classic Rally then took the road to wide open spaces, further south, in an improbable diagonal between the Atlas Mountains and the first sand dunes. from Sahara to Merzouga. A dinner in the heart of the dunes was also organized for a magical evening with your eyes directed towards the night sky and the countless stars.After visiting the North of the Kingdom and its very rich agricultural and forest regions, the Morocco Classic Rally then took the road to wide open spaces, further south, in an improbable diagonal between the Atlas Mountains and the first sand dunes. from Sahara to Merzouga. A dinner in the heart of the dunes was also organized for a magical evening with your eyes directed towards the night sky and the countless stars.
The results of the first stages were confirmed on arrival at Lake BIN EL OUIDANE having appeared in the hollow of the mountains. All the majesty of its colors were in the spotlight at the start of the last stage of this grandiose 25th Morocco Classic Rally, the official arrival of which was organized at LA MAMOUNIA, in Marrakech.
he last special stages were only formalities for the leading crews of the two Classic and Prestige categories after a week of hurtling down the Moroccan roads and the 20 regularity stages contested so far.
The Porsche 911 of Reda Meziane and Zineb Cheamo unsurprisingly won in the Classic category and became the first 100% Moroccan team to win the event. Cyril Neveu not expecting so much at the time of the traditional award ceremony organized in Marrakech, the Red City.
Daily reports, stage by stage
2018 – CHECKINGS / 10 MARCH : TANGER
2018 – STAGE 1 / 11 MARCH : TANGER – TETOUAN
Rally Morocco Classic – La Route du Coeur: 25th edition
from 10 to 16 March 2018 Sunday, March 11 – STAGE ...
from 10 to 16 March 2018 Sunday, March 11 – STAGE ...
2018 – STAGE 2 / 12 MARCH : TETOUAN – FES
2018 – STAGE 3 / 13 MARCH : FES – IFRANE
2018 – STAGE 4 / 14 MARCH : IFRANE – MERZOUGA
2018 – STAGE 5 / 15 MARCH : MERZOUGA – BIN EL OUIDANE
2018 – STAGE 6 / 16 MARCH : BIN EL OUIDANE – MARRAKECH
Final overall classifications
CLASSIC category
1- R. MEZIANE / Z. CHEMAO (Porsche Targa)2- JM. ARLAUD / MF. ARLAUD (Citroën DS 21)
3- C. GHISTELINCK – L. DAVID (MERCEDEZ 280 SE)
PRESTIGE category
1- B. OUVIER / J. OUVIER (Dodge Viper)2- P. LUCCHITTI / A. FORTE (MERCEDES AMG Coupé)
3- M. COVAREL / C. MORARD (Mercedes SL55 AMG)
