ERC
ERC Take Five with Peter MacKay
ERC reporter Peter MacKay is in full countdown mode to Barum Czech Rally Zlín, round six of the FIA European Rally Championship from 15 - 17 August.
A familiar and hugely trusted voice on Rally.tv, MacKay took time out of his meticulous preparations for one of the highlights of his motorsport year to answer five key questions from FIAERC.com.
What’s getting you excited about this year’s Barum Czech Rally Zlín?
“Barum Rally is the most fearsome Tarmac rally in the world. It’s completely unique. It’s incredibly fast in places, the challenge of the what the weather will do is always a question mark. The quality of the local drivers is always an amazing thing to behold. I firmly believe to win the European championship, you’ve basically got to conquer the local boss of each rally. If you want to score big points you have to go to Rome and beat guys like Andrea Crugnola and Giandomenico Basso. Miko Marczyk and Andrea Mabellini, our championship contenders, were both up there mixing it with the very best in Rome, which was very impressive. For Barum it’s an even tougher challenge to go there and beat the likes Jan Kopecký, Erik Cais, Adam Březík, Filip Mareš, you’ve got to be really on your game because they know the roads better, they know how the roads evolve. It’s also the history of the place, 54 editions, in the ERC since 1984. You go into the same roads that all of the greats have been down in World Rally Cars, in all kinds of different eras. You can’t help but be drawn in by it.”
Fans flock to the Barum Czech Rally Zlín stages in massive mumbers
© ERC
Your first Barum Czech Rally Zlín was in 2023. Was it a case of expectations met or exceeded?
“Totally exceeded. I didn’t realise what I was getting myself into. I’d been quite ignorant to it to be really honest. As soon as you get there you realise it’s a totally unique event when you see the quality of the local drivers. Obviously I was aware that Jan Kopecký was the driver to beat but to be there at the stopline and tell Jan he’d scored his 100th stage win on that rally was a special moment and cool to experience. Iain Campbell, our championship manager, had said to me, ‘I can’t wait for you to see Zlín’. I wondered why that was, but you go to the Friday night super special in Zlín and you see the passion of the local fans… oh my god it’s off the scale. It definitely exceeded my expectations in spades and that enthusiasm for the event has grown every year I go.”
The Friday night Zlín super special provides a stunning spectacle
© ERC
What does a typical daily Barum Czech Rally Zlín schedule look like to you?
“This year I’m actually quite lucky because I’m arriving at a reasonable time on Thursday and Seb Marshal [ERC location manager] and I are going to drive Pindula. It’s one of the most famous stages in the world for me and the heritage of that stage… when you watch the onboards of Kopecký in 2004 in the Fabia WRC, your eyes are on stalks. You watch some of the more modern footage and it’s the same thing. I want to drive it, at normal road speed, just to get a feel of what the guys are experiencing. Friday is going to be a particularly special day because I’m very lucky, and this is not a usual schedule I’d say, because I’m getting taken down the Qualifying Stage, straight after qualifying, with last year’s winner Dominik Stříteský. It will be my first time riding in a rally car and I’ve been struggling to sleep for the last few weeks because I’m so excited about it. There will be a little bit of a rest and then it all kicks off with the super special on Friday night. When you get into the rally it’s just flat out, it’s go, go, go, stage to stage following the story. And with Barum it’s never, ever dull, that’s the thing. There are so many stories to follow. It’s the ultimate challenge. A lot of drivers who go there for the first time it catches them out because it’s just so difficult. For us as stage-end reporters you are on it all of the time. It’s the most stimulating event of the year.”
ERC reporter MacKay is a trusted voice on Rally.tv's ERC coverage
© ERC
You are widely respected for your detailed research. What have you found out ahead of this year’s event and what could be the decisive moment on this rally, based on the itinerary?
“The Podhoran stage, which is going to be new to most, although there are sections have been used on the local Rallysprint Kopná event, which Březík, Stříteský and Mareš have been quick on and that will play a factor. Something quite unusual for Barum Rally, which we had last year, was the gravel part of the Bunč stage. The gaps in time last year on that stage were amazing. This year it’s the same stage but it’s in reverse. There was a bit at the end of the stage last year that was downhill in a forest on very slippery Tarmac. This year it will be uphill so that bit will be a bit easier, but the gravel part will really shake the field up so Bunč will still be the really key stage.”
A "fearsome" challenge awaits the ERC stars, according to MacKay
© ERC
Who’s your tip for the victory?
“A Škoda! It’s amazing, Škoda has only lost the rally once since 2009, which is remarkable. Only Václav Pech has beaten them in the last 15 years in a Mini. You have to think it’s going to be a Škoda and a local driver. If a non-Czech driver was to win, whichever driver manages it, it would be the achievement of their career. A lot of our frontrunners in the ERC are still seeking that big win. To win your home event is one thing, to win a round of the ERC is one thing, but to win Barum against the locals would be a crowning achievement.”
