MotoGP Front-Runner to Take Part in Rally Event

The worlds of MotoGP and WRC will collide this month, as Ducati factory racer Enea Bastianini will take the wheel of a fearsome Group B rally car.

The chance drive is part of the Rallylegend festival, taking place from 10 to 13 October in San Marino. It brings together some of the biggest stars and cars from the rally world. As the name suggests, the focus for the event is on the rally cars of the past, with Group B Audi Quattros taking centre stage alongside Lancia Stratos and even some retro Dakar machines for good measure.

The car ‘La Bestia’ will be driving is one of the most famous machines to ever turn a wheel in the World Rally Championship, the fire-breathing five-cylinder Audi Quattro S1. In WRC trim they can produce close to 500bhp, although some, like the Pikes Peak-spec S1 which won the event in 1987 at the hands of Walter Röhrl, could make more than 600bhp.

Joining Bastianini in the Audi will be the Italian TV and radio host Maddalena Corvaglia, who like the Ducati MotoGP star has a love of all things two-wheeled. She’s reported to have ridden bikes like Ducati’s Monster, Harley-Davidsons and an MV Agusta Brutale. She is also the patron of the 2024 Rallylegend festival.

Also on the roster are several big names from the four-wheeled racing world, including Stig Blomqvist, former F1 racer Heikki Kovalainen, Romain Dumas, Francois Delacour, and F1 legend Jacky Ickx to name just a few.

One big-name MotoGP star missing from the bill is Valentino Rossi, who is a regular on the Italian rally circuit. He is though in the midst of trying to turn around his VR46 MotoGP team’s up and down season, so perhaps he’s a little too busy this time around!

Find out more on the Rallylegends event here.

Find all the latest motorcycle news on Visordown.com