Ford Motorsport Opens Season in Eskişehir

The new Turkish Rally Championship season kicks off this year with Rally Phrygia. The opening round of the 2018 Turkish Rally Championship, and an international European Rally Trophy event, Rally Phrygia will be held in Eskişehir on 5-6 May. Run on asphalt stages, the rally will use Sazova Park as its service park this year, while the Eskişehir Amateur Sports House will serve as rally headquarters.

The "Fiesta Rally Cup", which in its revamped format gives rally enthusiasts the chance to compete as part of a professional team, will again follow the Turkish Championship calendar in 2018. As part of the Fiesta Rally Cup, 12 two-wheel-drive Fiesta R2T cars will compete on Rally Phrygia.

The Fiesta Rally Cup also aims to become Europe's only international single-make rally cup in the future. To that end, Bulgaria's Georgi Gradzhiev will take part in the Fiesta Rally Cup in a Fiesta R2 on this season-opening rally. Other foreign drivers will also compete under the Fiesta Rally Cup banner on the gravel rallies later in the season. The International Engine of the Year-winning Ford Fiesta offers superior driving dynamics

Fitted with EcoBoost engine technology, which has won International Engine of the Year for the past six years, and offering superior driving dynamics in all road conditions, the Fiestas will take part in the Turkish Championship and the Fiesta Rally Cup with 1.0L and 1.6L engine capacities, in the 4x2 R2T and 4x4 R5 respectively. Through the Fiesta Rally Cup, the Ford Fiesta R2T cars not only compete in their own dedicated championship but also fight in the front-wheel-drive car category, which is run as a separate class within the Turkish Rally Championship.

With the 2018 season, Yağız Avcı returns to the Ford Motorsport Türkiye fold

Ford Motorsport Türkiye is much more ambitious in the Turkish Rally Championship this year, with champion driver Yağız Avcı returning to the team. Last year the Red Bull athlete added the European Rally Trophy victory to his five Turkish titles, and he also opens his season in Eskişehir. The favourite for the Turkish Rally Championship, Avcı will compete in a 4x4 Ford Fiesta R5 as he bids to become the first driver to win the Turkish Rally Championship for a sixth time.