All three drivers will also be using Citroën C3 Rally 2 cars, which should increase the level of competition.
Other teams vying for the top spots include the Porsche 911 GT3s of Iván Armas and Ayoze Benítez, the Alpine A110 GT+ of Benjamín Avella, and the Skoda Fabia Rally2 with which Alfonso Viera returns.
The Canary Islands Asphalt Rally Championship (CCRA) concludes with the Maspalomas Rally, which in its 52nd edition will bring together 85 participating teams. Technical checks of the vehicles will take place on Friday afternoon at Expomeloneras. The competition itself will be held on Saturday, organized by the Escudería del Sur de Gran Canaria (Southern Gran Canaria Racing Team), with both the start and finish lines located at the Maspalomas Lighthouse.
This event marks the end of the regional championship and is also the penultimate round of the BP Las Palmas Championship, where several titles are still up for grabs. In contrast, the CCRA (Canary Islands Rally Championship) is almost entirely decided. Furthermore, it will be the final opportunity to determine the definitive standings for the Canary Islands Rally Trophy, reserved for the oldest cars in the Canary Islands. The event will also serve as the final round for several promotional trophies, such as the Rally 4 Cup, Clio Trophy, and Junior FCA; it also counts towards categories like Enma-2RM Yaris, FALP Promotion and FALP Steering Wheel, Faroga 1.6 Pastelería La Madera, Pro-Auto Panadería La Madera, Faroga-N3, and Bardahl Lubricantes Pro-Auto Cup.
Among the main contenders for victory are Yeray Lemes and Aitor Cambeiro—the only prominent representatives of the CCRA—who will be looking to secure the provincial title, once again driving their usual car in the regional championship and sporting the number one plate. Also competing in Citroën C3 Rally2s are two other strong contenders for first place this year: Luis Monzón and José Carlos Déniz—absent since their participation in the WRC-Islas Canarias but winners of the last Rallye Santa Brígida and with two previous victories in Maspalomas—along with the Russians Alexey Lukyanuk and Yury Kulikov, who, after failing to achieve their goals in the CCRA, return after recently leading the “Villa de Teror” Rally with the intention of achieving their first overall victory here. Completing the list of favorites are Iván Armas-Tino Guerra and Ayoze Benítez-Patricia González at the wheel of their respective Porsche 911 GT3s. Benjamin Avella-Agustín Alemán with Alpine A110+; as well as Alfonso Viera-Ariday Bonilla who will try to repeat their victory driving a Skoda Fabia Rally2 managed by Sport&You Canarias —the team also responsible for the technical support for the Citroëns of Lemes and Lukyanuk—.
On the other hand, José Yoday Betancort arrives from Lanzarote as the virtual champion of the Rally4 Cup Canarias and will try to compete against other Renault Clio Rally4s such as Noé Armas-Efraín González (Clio Trophy champions 2024)Alejandro Martín-Armando Rivero or Alejandro Martín-Gabriel Espino with Peugeot 208. Behind them are the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo piloted by Antonio Afonso-Jonay Miranda and Antonio Afonso-Miguel Ortiz along with the Toyota GR Yaris driven by Estalella-Batista enlivening the midfield.
The Clio Trophy Canarias will be decided here: Kevin Kipar-Raúl Sánchez arrive as leaders, just one point ahead of Jesús Pérez-Aythami Díaz, while Walter Delgado will not participate; Jesé Ramos-Alejandro Falcón will be the third contender among the Renault Rally5 cars. Yeray López-Carlos Javier González will also be there with a Clio R3T, as will Juan Betancort-Juan Carlos Díaz (Corolla Twin Cam). José/Narciso Cazorla (Toyota Starlet)In addition, there are the Yaris cars registered in the Enma-2RM Trophy where everyone will try to beat Acorán Navarro-Omar Godinho in the most crowded single-make format despite their veteran status.
In Regularity Sport, the champions José Juan Díaz-Rosmén Díaz with BMW 323i head a list of ten teams, followed by Olegario Reyes-Alejandro Cabrera; seven will do the whole test under RS modality while three will do it in Sport.
The route includes iconic sections such as Era del Cardón-Agüimes, Cazadores-La Cumbre, and especially Ayacata-San Bartolomé de Tirajana—each with three passes, the last one at night—which adds extra difficulty. The race will start on Saturday at 8:30 a.m. from Expomeloneras; the finish line will again be near the lighthouse around 9:00 p.m., followed by the official awards ceremony.
Activities begin on Friday at Expomeloneras —administrative headquarters— receiving vehicles for technical checks between 14:00 pm and 19:00 pm before holding the opening ceremony next to the Lighthouse starting at 20:00 pm.
For additional information on schedules or rankings, please consult www.rallyedemaspalomas.com or follow times online in www.VMRM.net.
