The battle resumes at the Rallye Castine Terre d'Occitanie

The Clio Trophy France Terre returns to action with 26 crews determined to confirm or reverse the initial trends that emerged four weeks ago in Capdenac-Gare.

On the heels of his maiden trophy victory, Tom Pellerey heads to Bretenoux, intent on doing it again and extending his lead. Navigated by Hervé Faucher, the CHL Sport Auto driver can draw on his two previous appearances at the event and his eighth-place result last year. However, the leader knows his pursuers hope to exact their revenge, starting with Benjamin Boulenc. On a current run of four consecutive top-four finishes, the Occitan driver is steadily closing in on a first success that would cement his place among the title contenders. With co-driver Chloé Barozzi-Gauze, he willnot have to worry about the pressure of the battle among the Juniors aiming for an official programme in 2025, unlike his rival.

Many Juniors are also vying for victory. Third in Causses, Faniry Rasoamaromaka wants to put his experience of the Castine to good use, as does his twin brother Mika, who was third here last year and determined to bounce back after suffering two punctures earlier this month. Meanwhile, Anthony Rovina, Jean Lavigne and Baptiste Panissié aim to get closer to the top three thanks to their experience, as is Bastien Bergounhe, one of the former winners of the trophy. Clio Trophy France Asphalte title-holder Benjamin Stirling, who impressed on his first outing on gravel, returns to confirm his potential on slightly different roads, as does Arthur Pelamourgues, the leader in the race to succeed him on the tarmac. Thomas Eustaquio, keen to continue his apprenticeship, completes the Junior class.

Like Benjamin Boulenc, Jean Paul Monnin focuses solely on winning the overall title against such a strong field of hopefuls. On the podium back in 2021, the driver from Franche-Comté is eager to impress, return to his winning ways and regain lost ground after his troubles in Causses. Switzerland's Aurélien Devanthéry, who finished a fine fifth in the first event of the calendar, will try to step up his pace in an event where he has already won in R2. Meanwhile, Yannick Francisci, Ludovic De Luca and Gaël Bertrand are other competitors not to be overlooked, as is Alexandre Gransagne, whose efforts in Causses were not rewarded.

Third among the Gentlemen in 2022 and second in 2023, Lilian Vialle will look to win in this category this season. However, he will have to contend with Vincent Favre-Miville, who is also experienced on these special stages, as well as Xavier Pruvot and Joan Font, both new to the Castine. Three newcomers complete the entry list. Gentleman Jérôme Moulene, well known in the French Rally Cup, will debut in the trophy. Belgium's Benoit Verlinde and Mexico's Emiliano Retama, who respectively won the Clio Trophy Belgium in 2022 and the NACAM Junior in 2023 with Clio Rally5, will add another string to their bow by returning to the model while maintaining their lofty ambitions.

Eight Clio Rally3s will also be in action. Last year's Rally3 winner and seventh overall, Quentin Ribaud will start with the development Clio Rally3 to validate some upgrades in real conditions under the supervision of the Alpine Racing engineers while acting as the zero car. The other drivers competing in the rally are Michaël Lobry, Julien Pontal, Jérôme Jacquot, Yanis Desangles, Simon Heinemann, Guillaume Tardy and Gabriele Campagnoli.

The 24th Rallye Castine Terre d'Occitanie begins on Saturday with recce runs of the day's three special stages, negotiated in the morning and afternoon, around the Bétaille service park. The following day, competitors will take on three other timed sectors twice. The event will consist of 138.4 kilometres against the clock over a total distance of 582.2 km before the podium ceremony. In addition to the points system at the finish, up to five 'Performer Jean Ragnotti' points will be awarded to the five fastest drivers on each stage.

Entry list 
#36Tom Pellerey – Hervé Faucher (J)
#37 Benjamin Boulenc – Chloé Barozzi-Gauze
#38 Faniry Rasoamaromaka – François Heer (J)
#39 Benjamin Stirling – Maxime Biegalke (J)
#40 Aurélien Devanthery – Michaël Volluz 
#41 Bastien Bergounhe – Mathieu Descharne (J)
#42 Jean Paul Monnin – Franck Gilliot
#43 Mika Rasoamaromaka – Bastien Pouget (J)
#44 Baptiste Panissié – Gaël Lavernhe (J)
#45 Yannick Francisci – Manon Perrin 
#46 Arthur Pelamourgues – Emmanuel Brissiaud (J)
#47 Anthony Rovina – Jean-Baptiste Bacchiolelli (J)
#48 Alexandre Gransagne – Loïc Maurel 
#49 Benoit Verlinde – Anton Dupan (J)
#50 Jean Lavigne – Arnaud Cubizolles (J)
#51 Thomas Eustaquio – Pauline Compozieux (J)
#52 Vincent Favre-Miville – Maelle Casays (G)
#53 Ludovic De Luca – José Boyer 
#54 Xavier Pruvot – Nathalie Pruvot (G)
#55 Lilian Vialle – Manuel Ghirardello (G)
#56 Gaël Bertrand – Fabien Adenot 
#57 Joan Font – Enrique Velasco (G)
#58 Julien Labonde – TBC (J)
#59 Emiliano Retama – Eduard Ferran (J)
#60 Déborrah Marie – Amandine Houry (F)
#61 Jérôme Moulene – Louis Delbarry (G)