Croatia Rally
Race Information
- Course: Start in Samobor, Zagreb County and finish in Kumrovec, Krapina-Zagorje
- Stages: 20
- Distance: 181.34 miles (291.84 kilometers)
- Date: April 18-21, 2024
- 2023 Winner: Elfyn Evans
- Course: Start in Samobor, Zagreb County and finish in Kumrovec, Krapina-Zagorje
- Stages: 20
- Date: April 18-21, 2024
- 2024 WINNER: Sebastien Ogier
🏆 2024 Croatia Rally Odds
The WRC Croatia Rally is making just its fourth appearance on the WRC calendar in 2024. Though it is a newcomer to the WRC calendar, the event goes as far back as 1974. The rally has been held under the names Delta Rally and Croatia Delta Rally as well. The mixture of tarmac and asphalt surfaces means grip levels can change daily. Croatia Rally has already garnered a reputation for close finishes, with winners in the past two events less than five seconds ahead of the runners-up.
| Driver | Team | Odds |
|---|---|---|
| Thierry Neuville | Hyundai Shell Mobis | +125 |
| Sebastien Ogier | Toyota Gazoo Racing | +200 |
| Elfyn Evans | Toyota Gazoo Racing | +225 |
| Ott Tanak | Hyundai Shell Mobis | +375 |
| Takamoto Katsuta | Toyota Gazoo Racing | +1800 |
| Adrien Fourmax | M-Sport Ford | +2000 |
| Andreas Mikkelsen | Hyundai Shell Mobis | +4500 |
| Gregoire Munster | M-Sport Ford | +25000 |
🚥 Croatia Rally Stages
The Croatia Rally, a newsworthy addition to the World Rally Championship (WRC) in 2021, quickly became renowned for its challenging conditions. This rally marks the return of a WRC event to Eastern Europe, the first since the Rally Bulgaria in 2010, and brings with it varying surface conditions.
Stages of the Croatia Rally are characterized by sealed surfaces that can be incredibly slippery even when dry. The asphalt stages vary significantly—from super-smooth to worn and severely broken surfaces.
These conditions, combined with unexpected crests and jumps, contribute to why this rally is a favorite among drivers. Such variability in grip levels requires drivers to constantly adapt their driving techniques and strategies, making each stage unpredictable and rip-roaring.
The 2022 event was equally gripping, compounded by torrential rain during the final leg which added even more challenge to the Rally1 crews. Kalle Rovanperä, another Toyota driver, emerged victorious, narrowly defeating Ott Tänak by just 4.3 seconds.
The service park, located at the Zagreb Fair near the expansive Sava River, serves as the hub for the event, accommodating teams and spectators alike in Croatia’s bustling capital.
Rally Estonia Schedule
Local Time:
- 8:25 a.m. – SS1 Krašić – Sošice 1
- 9:41 a.m. – SS2 Jaškovo – Mali Modruš Potok 1
- 10:39 a.m. – SS3 Jaškovo – Ravna Gora – Skrad 1
- 11:47 a.m. – SS4 Jaškovo – Platak 1
- 2:45 p.m. – SS5 Jaškovo – Platak 2
- 3:58 p.m. – SS6 Jaškovo – Ravna Gora – Skrad 2
- 5:16 p.m. – SS7 Jaškovo – Jaškovo – Mali Modruš Potok 2
- 6:09 p.m. – SS8 Jaškovo – Krašić – Sošice 2
Local Time:
- 7:31 a.m. – SS9 Smerovišće – Grdanjci 1
- 8:24 a.m. – SS10 Stojdraga – Gornja Vas 1
- 10:05 a.m. – SS11 Vinski Vrh – Duga Resa 1
- 11:03 a.m. – SS12 Pećurkovo Brdo – Mrežnički Novaki 1
- 2:31 p.m. – SS13 Smerovišće – Grdanjci 2
- 3:24 p.m. – SS14 Stojdraga – Gornja Vas 2
- 5:05 p.m. – SS15 Vinski Vrh – Duga Resa 2
- 6:03 p.m. – SS16 Pećurkovo Brdo – Mrežnički Novaki 2
Local Time:
- 7:08 a.m. – SS17 Trakošćan – Vrbno 1
- 8:35 a.m. – SS18 Zagorska Sela – Kumrovec 1
- 10:23 a.m. – SS19 Trakošćan – Vrbno 2
- 1:15 p.m. – SS20 Zagorska Sela – Kumrovec 2
| POSITION | DRIVER | TEAM |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sebastien Ogier | Toyota Gazoo Racing |
| 2 | Elfyn Evans | Toyota Gazoo Racing |
| 3 | Thierry Neuville | Hyundai Shell Mobis |
| 4 | Ott Tanak | Hyundai Shell Mobis |
| 5 | Takamoto Katsuta | Toyota Gazoo Racing |
| 6 | Andres Mikkelsen | Hyundai Shell Mobis |
| 7 | Gregoire Munster | M-Sport Ford |
| 8 | Nikolay Gryazin | DG Sport |
| 9 | Yohan Rossel | DG Sport |
| 10 | Sami Pajari | Printsport |
🏁 WRC at Croatia History & Highlights
The first edition of the Croatia Rally was the INA Delta TLX rally in 1974 in what was then Yugoslavia. Yugoslavian driver Tomislav Markt won the first event in a BMW 1600. The early events were very long as drivers would make their way through much of now Croatia. By 1977, the race had graduated from a regional event to become a Yugoslavian national championship event.
The Croatia Rally, then called the Delta Rally, entered the FIA ( Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile) in 1986. In doing so, organizers hoped to join the European Rally Championship (ERC). Even with the civil war in Yugoslavia in the 1990s, the rally continued with great popularity, bringing it to the highest coefficient rating in Europe. That gave it the standing to be added to the ERC calendar.
The event joined the ERC in 2007 under the title of the Croatia Delta Rally. Croatian driver Juraj Šebalj won the first ERC Croatia Delta Rally in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX. The event remained on the ERC calendar with Italian driver Corrado Fontana winning in 2008 and Krum Donchev of Bulgaria winning in 2009.
Due to the financial conditions of the Great Recession, organizers moved the rally from the capital Zagreb to Rijeka. Italian Luca Rossetti claimed wins in 2010 and 2011 and Juho Hänninen of Finland won in 2012.
Organizers moved the rally once again in 2013 to the coastal town of Porec. That year was the final time the event was included on the ERC calendar. Šebalj won the 2014 race once again and remains the last Croatian to win the race on home soil. The WRC race was not held from 2018 to 2020.
In October 2020, the FIA announced the Croatia Rally would join the WRC calendar in 2021. This marked the first WRC event in eastern Europe since Rally Bulgaria in 2010. That made Croatia the 34th country to stage a championship rally. Eight-time WRC champion Sébastien Ogier won the first WRC Rally Croatia in 2021.
Ogier and 2022 champion Kalle Rovanperä of Finland are the only drivers with WRC wins in Croatia.
Circuit Information
The WRC Croatia Rally is a 20-stage rally held over four days and based in Zagreb in central Croatia. Its mixture of asphalt and tarmac stages at high speed makes it an exciting and close challenge.
Last year’s winner Rovanperä won by just 4.3 seconds. The year before, Ogier won by less than a second. The longest stage of the rally is the Kostanjevac – Petruš stage spanning 23.76 kilometers (14.76 miles). The rally usually takes around two hours, 45 minutes to three hours in total.
