This year the FIA European Historic Rally Championship is back with the Ypres Historic Rally. The continent’s best historic drivers are back after the Ypres Historic Rally was one of the top events in the European Historic Rally Championship between 2003 and 2019.
The line-up for the 30th edition of the Historic Rally in Ypres looks absolutely fantastic. The favourite is Jari-Matti Latvala, three-time vice world rally champion and current team boss at Toyota Gazoo Racing in the WRC, will be at the start with a Toyota Celica ST185.
He will compete against two-time Ypres winner Bruno Thiry, who will be reunited with the Subaru Impreza 555 Gr.A that he drove to second place in 1997.
The very best Celica
Jari-Matti Latvala is already looking forward to the fast asphalt stages around Ypres. “I had heard about Ypres many times in the past and in 2022 and 2023 I discovered the challenging, fast course with its deep cuts, but I never had the chance to drive it myself. I am already looking forward to it, because it is certainly not easy.” Latvala said.
“During the WRC events I also really appreciated having the service park in the middle of the city, because you step out of your hotel and you are in the service park and the terraces provide a very pleasant atmosphere all day long.”
Latvala has a deep respect for the history of the Ypres Rally. “Have two Finns ever won here? I know that Henri Toivonen won here with a Porsche in 1984 and my good friend Juho Hänninen won in 2012. I even asked Juho if he wanted to be my navigator in Ypres, but he had other commitments for the team that weekend!”
The choice of the Toyota Celica ST185 is no coincidence, because JML Sports, Jari-Matti Latvala’s own team, builds these Celicas. “The Celica ST185 is, after the current Yaris WRC, the most successful rally car in Toyota’s history. This version won three world titles in the Drivers’ category (92, 93 and 94) and two manufacturers’ titles (93 and 94). It is also the car that my idol, and four-time world champion Juha Kankkunen, drove. It is a great car with a fantastic sound. I enjoy it every time.”
Bruno Thiry returns with the Subaru 28 years later
Latvala won’t have it all his own way and one of the chief competitors of the Finnish world champion for the overall victory is Bruno Thiry. The ex-WRC ace is also a two-time winner in Ypres in2002 and 2003. Now, 28 years later, Bruno Thiry will be reunited with the Subaru Impreza 555 Gr.A in which he finished second behind Freddy Loix in 1997.
“Just like Jari-Matti, I am completely in love with the typical sound of the brutal boxer engine in the Impreza Gr.A,” Thiry laughs. “When I drove it again in Vresse-sur-Semois after 28 years, the smell of petrol and, in particular, the raw sound immediately felt like I was coming home. What an incredible machine, especially because we are now driving with more modern, better tyres and shock absorbers than back then.”
Thiry will be at the start with the Subaru thanks to James Harrison, who will also be driving a Subaru Legacy in Ypres. “That’s an incredible story. Harrison wanted to restore a Subaru for his collection and he had bought this Impreza. When documenting the history of the car, it turned out to be the Subaru that I drove in Ypres in 1997. The car was brand new at the time and was entered by Future World, Gérard Magniette’s team, in Winfield colours. James decided to restore the car in those colours and after a year and a half of restoration work, he called me with the proposal to drive the car in Ypres. An offer that I obviously couldn’t refuse!”
In terms of sport, Thiry hopes to compete with Jari-Matti Latvala. “I’m a little worried about our starting position, because our Subaru is too young. It means that we’re allowed to drive, but we won’t be included in the rankings of the European rally. But, for the prestige, we’re definitely going to fight for the victory, even though the last time I drove in Ypres was my drive with an Opel Corsa in the Ypres Masters in 2018.”
With Jari-Matti Latvala and Bruno Thiry, two world-class drivers will be at the start of the Ardeca Ypres Rally. Overall, The line-up looks downright magnificent, with more than 30 participants on the European stage, including multiple British champion Mark Higgins in a Triumph TR7 V8, alongside the Belgian Historic drivers. BMW’s M3 E30, Porsches 911, Lancia Stratos, Ford Sierra Cosworth 4×4, Alpine A310, Lancia Delta Integrale…the list goes on. Rally enthusiasts will be drooling over the fleet of vehicles on 27 and 28 June.
The Ardeca Ypres Historic Rally kicks off on Friday, June 27, with the Reninge and Langemark stages, totaling 21.69 km. On Saturday, the Historic drivers will start before the modern cars, completing two loops with Dikkebus, Watou, Kemmelberg, and Zillebeke, bringing the total timed distance to 135.6 km.
