Following the cancellation of the 2008 Dakar, Mitsubishi Motors Corporation and its motor sport arm MMSP are pleased to announce that Team Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart will participate in the inaugural Central Europe Rally.
The driver line-up will feature Luc Alphand/Gilles Picard (France), Hiroshi Masuoka/Pascal Maimon (Japan/France), Stéphane Peterhansel/Jean-Paul Cottret (France) and Joan Nani Roma/Lucas Cruz (Spain), who had all been entered to compete in the ‘Dakar Series’, in super-production specification Montero Evolutions.
The Central Europe Rally is due to start in Budapest, Hungary, on Sunday April 20, and its program includes seven competitive sections in Hungary and Romania before the finish beside Lake Balaton on Saturday April 26. The total distance of the event is 3,061km, including 1,570km of against-the-clock action. This event is not meant to substitute the Dakar, though until the return of the legendary race, the Dakar Series will be the worldwide reference as regards to the world of rally-raids. The Central Europe Rally is the first event to be run within the framework of this series.
