An estimated 300,000 fans watched Jan Kopecký win Barum Czech Rally Zlín yesterday, organisers of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge event have confirmed.
The asphalt event, located in south-east Czech Republic, has always attracted huge numbers of spectators with 250,000 attending the rally in 2010.
This year’s huge support was not lost on the IRC’s leading contenders, who praised the fervent backing they’d received from the fans throughout the three-day contest.
Second-place finisher Freddy Loix said: “Coming to the Barum Rally I feel a bit like I am driving at home. It gives me an extra push to do a good result.”
His co-driver Frédéric Miclotte added: “It’s great to come here and see all the people, all the great fans. On the road section to the podium there was one guy standing with a panel saying ‘1.2s’ [the Belgian crew’s margin of defeat] then he turned the panel and it said ‘sorry’. The Czech people are really amazing.”
IRC title leader Juho Hänninen added: “You could see it on the stages and the road sections that there were more spectators.”