After a break from the Intercontinental Rally Challenge, Franz Wittmann and Klaus Wicha are to enter Rally Deutschland in preparation for their entry on the Czech round of the IRC.
ADAC Rally Deutschland event is part of the World Rally Championship calendar, and is based in the South-Western city of Trier.
The stages of Rally Deutschland are very comparable to that of the Zlin based roads, on which Wittmann and Wicha will compete less than a week later in the IRC event.
The similarities will give the pairing a perfect opportunity to fine tune their setup for the IRC round, and another clear benefit is the close proximity of the two rallies, meaning that logistically entry to both is perfectly feasible, despite the short time between them.
Speaking of the two events, Wittmann said “It's a perfect fit since the Rally Germany and the IRC run in the Czech Republic can be handled logistically within one week. Additionally, it was important to prepare for the IRC with a racing assignment after the long break. Testing, of course, is also very important but one can't compare that to the tension of a competition”.
The Interwetten Racing driver has competed in the WRC on one previous occasion, making his debut in Sweden during the 2004 season.
He will be competing in the Peugeot 207 S2000, and will be in direct competition with drivers such as Henning Solberg, Xavi Pons, Per Gunnar Andersson and Martin Prokop.
Wittmann & Wicha enjoyed testing for Rally Deutschland last week, but re-iterated that his priority was the IRC, but also stated that it would be good to compete with the WRC field in Germany.
“We did very well on the set-up during the last days. Currently the IRC has top priority for me, of course, but it surely will prove to be very interesting to compete with these top drivers here in Germany”, said Wittmann after the test.
Rally Deutschland features stages that pass through picturesque vineyards, as well as the notorious Baumholder military ranges, something that will surely be sat in the back of every drivers mind.
The rally runs from the 20th to the 22nd August, with the ceremonial start in Trier on August 19th.
