Rally dei Nuraghi e del Vermentino, big names expected

The countdown continues: three weeks to go until the 21st edition of the Rally dei Nuraghi e del Vermentino, round of the Italian Rally Terra Championship that on Saturday 25 and Sunday 26 October will give Berchidda and the north-west of Sardinia an exciting weekend in tricolor hues. The Rassinaby Racing staff, supported by the Sardinia Region, the Automobile Club Sassari and the Sardinia Delegation of Aci Sport, is working in preparation for the event that will include the sixth Rally Vermentino Historicu and the fifth Baja Vermentino Terre di Gallura, the penultimate events, respectively, of the Italian Rally Terra Storico and Cross Country Side by Side Championships.
In the meantime, numerous registrations are arriving and there is no shortage of big names. Registrations for the Modern Rally will remain open until midnight on Wednesday 16, while for the Historic and Cross Country there will be time until 6 pm on Monday 21.
Rassinaby Racing president Pietro Calvia is enthusiastic: “For someone like me, who in the 1980s was a kid who grew up watching those wonderful cars race, seeing them back here on land is a unique opportunity. I remember the emotion I felt when, as a child, I looked out from the terrace to see the 037s racing under my house. At the time there was no internet, you could only see something on TV or in the newspapers, so watching the Costa Smeralda on land from our homes and on our roads was a dream for us, it was as if aliens had arrived with spaceships. That's how my inspiration and that of a good part of the association was born: that's where the flame of passion that still burns in us was lit and drives us to organize our Vermentino Historicu with enthusiasm and dedication, which with the Rally dei Nuraghi del Vermentino and the Baja Terre di Gallura allows us to give sportsmen and enthusiasts so much spectacle”.
The mayor of Berchidda Andrea Nieddu was also satisfied: "The municipal administration and I personally are very happy to be able to announce the new edition of the Rally dei Nuraghi e del Vermentino and the Historic and Cross Country championships that it has been carrying for years. We are convinced that it is an established event in the national motoring panorama and that it is also a model capable of developing different forms of tourism, which go beyond that of the sector. The event is tested, it has been able to combine sport with all the excellences of the territory, in particular Vermentino, and we are happy to be able to contribute again to the creation of an event that promotes our community and Sardinia".
Berchidda will host the start, finish, checks, Shakedown, Qualifying stage, race direction, service park and press room. On Friday 25, after free practice (7 am), the qualifying stage (2.44 km, from 9 am) and the Shakedown (10.15 am), at 1.30 pm there will be the ceremonial start and the cars will head towards the new “Erula-Tula” (14.13 km, 2.13 pm and 4.43 pm), to be repeated twice. On Saturday 26, the competitors will compete with the double passages on the special stages “Alà dei Sardi-Buddusò” (6.90 km, 9.57 am and 1.42 pm), which will touch Monte Lerno, and “Pattada-Oschiri” (20.08 km, 10.28 am and 2.13 pm), a test that includes the old “Filigosu”.