The 27-year-old from Poland is one of several standout entrants for Rally Serras de Fafe, Felgueiras, Boticas, Vieira do Minho e Cabeceiras de Basto – round one of the 2023 FIA European Rally Championship – which takes place in northern Portugal from 10 - 12 March.
Prior to his step up to the FIA World Rally Championship’s WRC2 category for the 2022 season, Marczyk enjoyed considerable success in the ERC. He claimed third in the overall standings in 2021 and finished that year as the highest-placed ERC-Michelin Talent Factory member, in addition to landing three outright podiums.
But while the ORLEN Team driver will be among the contenders for victory in Fafe, there’s a clear objective behind his decision to test himself in the ERC once again alongside co-driver Szymon Gospodarczyk.
“We will use our new rally car, the Škoda Fabia RS Rally2, for the first time,” said the double Polish champion. “We will treat this event as a warm-up after the winter break and use it to get familiar with the new car. The first starts of the Fabia RS look promising and I am curious how soon Szymon and I will start to use the potential of the new car.”
Following their return to Fafe next week, Marczyk and Gospodarczyk will contest the world championship-counting events in Portugal, Sardinia, Estonia and Finland as part of their WRC2 campaign, which will include additional world-level outings during the year.
Of the possibility of returning to the ERC-counting ORLEN Rally Poland, and event Marczyk and Gospodarczyk won in 2022, Marczyk confirmed that while an outing on Rally Barborka in Warsaw was planned, further appearances on home soil were still undecided.
“I hope that [Rally Barborka] will not be our only performance in front of the native audience,” he said.
Gospodarczyk added: “Fafe is where we will test the Škoda Fabia RS Rally2. I can't wait for this. The new Fabia is an improved design, we have high hopes and I am convinced that it will bring us a lot of joy.”
Finland
Italy
Hungary