Rally Estonia has provided numerous thrilling moments and historical milestones throughout the years!
The history of Rally Estonia, which returns to the European Rally Championship (ERC) series this year, traces back to 2009. That's when Silver Kütt, who had competed as a co-driver in seven World Rally Championships, shared the idea of organizing a rally in Estonia with his close friend and former WRC driver Urmo Aava. After pitching the concept to the marketing mastermind Tarmo Hõbe, who named the event Rally Estonia, the groundwork began.
The inaugural Rally Estonia took place in 2010 and was claimed by Markko Märtin, a driver who elevated Estonian rally onto the global stage with five World Rally Championship victories during his career. Over the next two years, the roads of South Estonia saw dominance from Norwegian Mads Østberg, who will also participate in the ERC Delfi Rally Estonia this year.
The inclusion of notable competitors and the impeccable organization of Rally Estonia earned recognition in 2014 when the event joined the European Rally Championship (ERC) series for the first time. Ott Tänak and Raigo Mõlder clinched victory in the first ERC round in Estonia. Remarkably, in its debut year, Rally Estonia on the fast roads of South Estonia was acclaimed as the top rally of the ERC season.
Remaining on the European Championship calendar for three years, the organizing team then took a one-year break to pursue the goal of bringing a World Rally Championship (WRC) stage to Estonia. The first pieces of this ambitious plan fell into place in 2019 when Estonia hosted the sole WRC Promotional event in history with all the WRC teams present.
In June 2020, Tarmo Hõbe received a call from Oliver Ciesla, the director of the WRC Promoter at the time, offering Estonia the opportunity to host a WRC event. After a COVID-19-induced hiatus, the World Championship season resumed in September with WRC Rally Estonia, marking Estonia as the 33rd country to host a World Rally Championship event and the 600th round in WRC history. Esapekka Lappi and Janne Ferm claimed victory in the opening stage of the Rally Estonia 10th-anniversary rally, but the first WRC event win on Estonian soil was secured by the 2019 World Champions, Ott Tänak and Martin Järveoja.
On January 11, 2021, the organizing team of Rally Estonia received the ASAHI KASEI TEAM SPIRIT AWARD, and two days later, it was confirmed that Rally Estonia would remain on the WRC calendar for the next two years. Kalle Rovanperä and Jonne Halttunen emerged victorious in the 2021 Rally Estonia, marking their first World Rally Championship victory. The year 2021 was also significant as it celebrated the 100th year of Estonian Autosport, with Rovanperä becoming the youngest driver in rallying history to top the podium of the World Rally Championship at just 20 years and 289 days old. Presently, the Finns are two-time World Champions and have secured victory in Rally Estonia for three consecutive years (2021-2023).
If the Finns hold the record for the most victories in Rally Estonia among WRC events, then Ott Tänak and Martin Järveoja also boast three consecutive victories from the years 2018 to 2020. Furthermore, Tänak's triumph in the first ERC rally in Estonia solidifies his position as the most successful Rally Estonia driver of all time.
Robert Virves, the first Estonian Junior WRC World Champion, has also left his mark on the history of Rally Estonia. In 2022, Virves won a total of 17 special stages at the Junior World Championship stage on Estonian roads, surpassing Sébastien Ogier's JWRC special stage victory record from 2008.
Alongside local top drivers, Rally Estonia has had the privilege of hosting renowned WRC drivers such as Sébastien Ogier, Elfyn Evans, Thierry Neuville, Esapekka Lappi, Jari-Matti Latvala, Teemu Suninen, Craig Breen, Hayden Paddon, Yazeed Al-Rajhi, Martin Prokop, Toni Gardemeister, Oliver Solberg, and ERC champions Alexey Lukyanuk and Kajetan Kajetanowicz.
In 2024, Delfi Rally Estonia will return to the ERC series, promising an exhilarating rally weekend for both competitors and spectators. Don't miss the thrill and choose your rally pass from the Rally Estonia e-store or from the Piletitasku shop.