The rough and tumble is done for now. After the challenging conditions of Sardinia, Rally Poland marks the start of a summer of high-speed gravel rallies that could prove instrumental in the fight for the 2024 World Rally Championship.
Poland returns to the calendar for the first time since 2017 and the softer nature of the roads surrounding Mikołajki mark it out as unique among the trio of speed events where the WRC travels from Poland to Latvia and then on to Finland.
The stages this weekend will be unfamiliar to some of the top-flight regulars, while one driver will be making history driving a Rally1 car with its hybrid system removed.
Here is everything you need to know ahead of Rally Poland.
Rally Poland Entry List
Total 43 crews
9 Rally1 crews
22 Rally2 crews (22 WRC2)
11 Rally3 crews (10 WRC3)
Ogier will take the startline for the fifth time in seven 2024 WRC events
Rally1
The Rally1 entry in Poland increases to nine cars, as Mārtiņš Sesks makes his debut in top-level machinery. This will be the first time we see a Rally1 car running with no hybrid, as Sesks uses the rally to get accustomed to the Puma before driving the full-spec car at his home event in Latvia next month.
The rest of the M-Sport lineup is business as usual, and it will be a case of building experience for both drivers. Adrien Fourmaux has never competed in Poland, while team-mate Grégoire Munster will be looking to build on his more positive performance in Sardinia.
Back in the championship battle, Thierry Neuville will lead the field away having established himself as title favorite. After a needless mistake in Sardinia, the Hyundai driver will be looking to protect that championship advantage in the face of a resurgent Ott Tänak. Taking over the third Hyundai is Andreas Mikkelsen, who makes his first gravel appearance of the year.
At Toyota, Sébastien Ogier returns for a fourth consecutive outing. With the eight-time champion in such good form, it should perhaps be no surprise that Toyota have called on his services once again. Regulars Elfyn Evans and Takamoto Katsuta complete the Toyota lineup.
WRC2
There is a relatively diminished WRC2 field in Poland after the incredible 45-car Rally2 entry in Sardinia. All 23 second-tier machines are registered for WRC2 points but championship leader Yohan Rossel and second-placed Jan Solans are both absent, along with Pepe López and Nicolas Ciamin.
That means the third, fourth and fifth placed drivers in the championship make up the top three starters. Oliver Solberg leads the field in a Škoda Fabia RS Rally2, followed by Sardinia winner Sami Pajari’s Toyota Yaris. Citroën’s Nikolay Gryazin is third and has registered for points for the first time since his WRC2 win in Croatia.
Both in Škodas, Lauri Joona starts fourth followed by Gus Greensmith, who will be looking to make up for his Portugal retirement. Other drivers who need strong results in Poland are Pierre-Louis Loubet (Škodas) and Teemu Suninen (Hyundai), who start 15th and 16th on the road, having both failed to finish in Portugal and Sardinia. They will be well placed to take advantage of any road sweeping ahead of them.
Local interest comes in the form of three-time European champion Kajetan Kajetanowicz, who starts sixth on the road ahead of Ireland’s Josh McErlean, both in Škodas. The Toyotas of Roope Korhonen and Georg Linnamäe start eighth and ninth, and Martin Prokop rounds out the top 10 in a Škoda.
Home favorite Kajetan Kajetanowicz contests his third WRC2 round of the season
Further down the order, Robert Virves makes his second WRC2 start of the year in another Škoda, while 2019 and 2021 Polish champion Mikołaj Marczyk is another local driver looking to make his mark.
WRC3
Rally Poland is not a round of the Junior World Rally Championship, so the number of Rally3 cars is limited to just 11, though there are some familiar JWRC names on the entry list.
Diego Domínguez is second in JWRC but, more importantly, leads WRC3 coming into Poland, so he will be looking to strengthen his advantage after class victories in Portugal and Sardinia.
Domínguez heads WRC3 entry
Third in the WRC3 standings is Jan Černý, who starts behind Domínguez, making it a Fiesta top two. Mattéo Chatillon starts third in a Renault Clio.
Behind Chatillon is a pair of Bolivian JWRC regulars, Bruno Bulacia and Nataniel Bruun. The remainder of the WRC3 entry is made up of local drivers, with Jakub Matulka, Gracjan Predko and Grzegorz Bonder leading the way.
Rally Poland itinerary
Based out of the town of Mikołajki in the north of Poland, the rally features 188 miles of competitive stages, starting with a 1.6-mile blast through Mikołajki Arena on Thursday evening.
The action gets underway proper on Friday morning, with two loops of three stages punctuated by a tire fitting zone in Olecko. Each loop is made up of the 18.3-mile Stańczyki, 8.0-mile Wieliczki and 8.2-mile Olecko tests.
Poland's roads have their own character - and are fast
Friday is rounded out by another run through Mikołajki Arena and, after 72.1 miles without service, the cars and crews will no doubt be ready for some attention.
Saturday is a slightly longer day, with 77 miles covered across seven stages. The day begins with the 11.5-mile Świętajno test, followed by 12.4 miles through Gołdap, and the 13.9 miles of Czarne. The crews then return to Mikołajki for a third pass of the 1.6-mile arena stage.
Unlike Friday, Saturday does include a 40-minute lunchtime service, so there will be time to carry out any repairs before the afternoon loop. This is made up of the same three stages used in the morning, but with the Mikołajki Arena stage omitted.
Sunday features four stages and 39.8 miles that bring the rally to its conclusion. The 12.9-mile Gmina Mrągowo and 7.0-mile Mikołajki make up the day’s two loops. The first two passes are run back-to-back, followed by a 50-minute regroup.
The second loop is punctuated by a 45-minute regroup which will bring the crews back together ahead of the powerstage and the finish in Mikołajki Arena.
